Kiryas Joel school aid projections to be revised

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Kiryas Joel - The seemingly inordinate 12.14 percent increase to state aid for the Kiryas Joel School District will be revised when the state puts out new estimates in February.

Numbers released Tuesday showed Kiryas Joel receiving a 74 percent increase in transportation aid, which subsequently ballooned the district’s total aid in Gov. David Paterson’s proposed budget. Aid for every other school district in the mid-Hudson fell by anywhere from 3.7 to 13.8 percent.

The state had to use old data to calculate transportation funding for the district because, for at least two years, Kiryas Joel hasn’t submitted claim forms, said spokeswoman Jane Briggs. The data release noted that aid for eight districts statewide was based on incomplete information.

The district’s foundation aid cut was 5.4 percent and is on par with decreases to districts with similar poverty levels and tax burdens, according to the state budget office.

Kiryas Joel Superintendent Joel Petlin said that transportation costs have increased in the district along with the population.

Although the public school serves only special-education students, state law requires that all children be bused, meaning the district transports about 6,000 children each day, Petlin said.

It is unclear what the February revision will yield.

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