Southern Cayuga Central School's Board of Education called for a mulligan the day after its budget was voted down 413-378 during Tuesday's elections.

Board President Ted Rejman said the board would discuss a new budget during its June 2 meeting instead of going to the contingency budget.

“We will make up a different budget because there are too many government constraints with a contingency budget,” Rejman said. “The education department will direct how we spend the money, which will limit sports and bus runs.”

In order to entice voters to approve the budget, the school will have to find new ways to save money by changing daily business practices, pulling services back from BOCES and rearranging services that already exist.

“We will do what it takes but I do not want to cut positions,” Rejman said. “I don't think we are ready to make those kind of cuts and it won't help the school.”

Superintendent Mary Kay Worth said changes to the budget, which failed by 35 votes, could be minor if they happened at all.

“It's a very responsible budget,” Worth said. “I'm not sure, but we may bring the same budget back. The bottom line is we adjusted our total revenue by $300,000 to more accurately represent what we bring in.”

For example, Worth said past budgets may have claimed $75,000 in revenue for Medicaid but actual revenue has been closer to $15,000. When revenues were lowered all across the budget it meant the money taxpayers were already paying accounted for a larger percentage of the budgetary pie.

While the amount paid by taxpayers increased by more than 5 percent, Worth said nearly 4 percent of the increase was a reflection of the revenue re-adjustment which meant taxpayers were only picking up an additional 1 percent of the bill.

But Joe Lonsky, who will join the board in July after being elected Tuesday, said a responsible budget would coordinate any tax increases with the income of local residents.

“They need to get the new budget increase in line with the people's financial increases,” Lonsky said. “Everyone in Albany and everywhere keeps saying taxes are already too high and no one is doing anything about it. We need to find a better balance for our expenditures.”

The board will have until mid-June to find that balance and if the budget fails again, the school will automatically have to go to its contingency plan.

“I want the members to bring some ideas to the table during our next meeting,” Rejman said. “We have to move fast because there is a time element in this if we want to get it back to the voters.”

But the budget might have on a serious diet to get under the 2 percent tax increase which Lonsky believes will make it more appealing to voters.

“It's time to put another hole in the belt and tighten it up because we're in for a rough time with this economy,” Lonsky said.

Staff writer Nate Robson can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 248 or nathan.robson@lee.net