While the new financial austerity in New York State may be endangering the future of education on Long Island, Massapequa is seemingly unaffected by Governor Andrew Cuomo’s new economic plan.

Governor Cuomo proposed a tax cap to provide relief for homeowners who have been burdened by what he calls the “out-of-control” property taxes in the state throughout recent years.

School districts will be most directly impacted, but are not the only municipalities affected by the tax cap. According to a report by Robert Weber of Moody’s investor service, local governments will also be affected.

“Although local governments other than school districts will be able to override the new property tax cap without going to voters, the cap will still put pressure on their ability to maintain revenues in step with growing expenditures, given relative weakness in other revenue items,”  Weber said.

The median U.S. property tax paid is $1,917; in New York, it’s $3,755 – 96 percent higher than the national average according to Governor Cuomo, causing many to believe that something may need to be done to change the economic trajectory of the state.

This would cap taxes at a two percent increase or the rate of inflation, whichever is lower, and the cap could hurt many schools come the 2012-2013 fiscal year, causing them to operate at austerity budget levels.

Massapequa however, seems to be safe from Cuomo’s plan.

The district received $20,497,375 in state aid for the 2010-2011 school year and while many districts received drastic cuts in state aid for the upcoming fiscal year, Massapequa did not.

Massapequa lost $137,000 in state aid for the school year that will start in September, a loss which is the equivalent of 0.08 percent of total budget and the smallest cut on Long Island.

“One of the things Massapequa has done in the past couple of years is to build reserves and fund balance,” Alan Adcock, Deputy Superintendent said. This practice, he said, allows Massapequa to continue as a high-performance district with financial stability.

The proposed budget for the 2011-2012 school year in Massapequa was $179,209,899; the fifth highest budget in Nassau County.

“This budget is one of the most fiscally sound budgets in Nassau County,” District Superintendent, Charles Sulc said in a June interview, “that continues to provide a high level of education that our kids have experienced and benefited  from at a time when there is still a sensitivity to the economic climate, built into the budget.”

Since the 2009-2010 year, Massapequa has continually been, and remains, under a two percent tax levy each year. For the 2011-2012 school year, district tax payers are facing only a 1.64 percent increase, which is considerably lower than the county average of a 3.42 percent increase.

However, Massapequa also continues to take its motto of “Excellence in Education” as its top priority with no program or spending cuts being reported for the 2011-2012 school year. The excellence is here to stay.