$2.2M in Aid Restored for Commack Schools in Final State Budget

With state Assembly members poised to vote on a final budget on Thursday, state leaders announced Wednesday school aid totals for the 2013-2014 budget year, with a boost of $2.2 million more in aid expected to Commack School District over the governor's proposal.

Commack school officials have considered cutting , buses, and more as the district struggles with an astronomical surge in pension payments: a $3.5 million increase next year alone.

The district had been originally proposed in Gov. Andrew Cuomo's budget to receive a cut in state funding of 3.54 percent, to $33,626,940. However since the executive budget was released in late January, legislators have lobbied to restore funding to schools.

State Sen. John Flanagan, R-Northport, the chair of the State Senate Education Committee, said in a recent interview that though education was the largest growth area in the budget, "we don't agree with the distribution of that, and that's where we will have a lot of the debate."

Commack's total aid – $35,886,328 – would now represent a 3.01 percent increase over last year.

The district isn't the only local one to receive a surge in funding compared to Cuomo's proposal; Smithtown is expected to receive $1.1 million more than previously thought.