"The district projects an additional $25,000 (fund balance) from this year's budget to offset the tax rate for 2008-2009, as we are now closer to the end of the current budget year than when the budget was developed from January to April," Bonnewell said.

CONSTRUCTION COST

Without counting a planned building project, the revamped budget increased 5 percent, or $289,000, over this year.

It is up another 5.7 percent, or $329,000, to cover the school building project approved by voters in June 2007. That projects totals $14.7 million and is being financed with serial bonds.

The tax levy would have increased only 2.2 percent over last year without the building project, Bonnewell said. The building project added another 7.3-percent increase to the levy, making the total increase 9.5 percent.

He said the district cut everything it could cut to create the revised budget. The increase for the project is fixed and cannot be reduced.

NO TAX RATE

A new tax-rate calculation wasn't made, Bonnewell said.

"Two of the three legs' of that calculation -- total assessed value and equalization rates -- are not in yet. We have only the tax-levy leg of the equation. Given that we cover three towns and two counties, we have, in years past, seen some pretty significant changes in the assessments and equalizations, so estimating is far less than a science."

The current tax rate is $5.89 per $1,000 of assessment.

If the revised budget fails at the revote, the district must by law adopt a contingency spending plan.

Bonnewell said full copies of the budget will be available at the school, the Schroon and North Hudson town halls, the Schroon Senior Citizens Center and the Glens Falls National Bank Schroon Lake Branch. In addition, budget flyers will be mailed to all addresses in the district.

Schroon Lake was the only school district in the North Country to have its budget defeated May 20.

lmckinstry@pressrepublican.com