First draft of Ridgewood school budget keeps increase under 2 percent
MONDAY MARCH 10, 2014, 4:06 PM
BY LAURA HERZOG
STAFF WRITER
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
The school district’s spending plan for the 2014-2015 school year features a local tax hike of 1.9 percent, the lowest increase for a Ridgewood school budget in the past 10 years.
The budget features a $86,223,037 local tax levy – a $1,614,402 increase over last year, which required a 2 percent property tax increase, Business Administrator Michael Falkowski said. The proposed tax levy for 2014-2015 amounts to about $172.09 more in property taxes for a resident with the average assessed home value of $688,358, he said.
The preliminary budget, which Falkowski presented to the Board of Education (BOE) on Monday, is now available on the district website. The budget “maintains existing district staff, academic offerings, extra-curricular activities and transportation,” he said, and “improves upon instruction” while meeting “our contractual obligations.”
