ALBANY, N.Y. May 17, 2017 – Voters across the state showed their pride in their local public schools, approving 99 percent of school budgets, according to a preliminary estimate by New York State United Teachers.
NYSUT President Andy Pallotta said, “This year’s annual budget vote is a ringing endorsement of public education. Parents and community members again showed the appreciation and respect they have for their local public schools and the educators who work tirelessly to deliver a superb public education to our state’s children.”
Of the 573 school budgets votes reviewed by NYSUT, 570 budgets passed while just three went down to defeat -- DeRuyter, Pittsford and East Ramapo.
The estimated 99 percent pass rate for school budgets continues the recent history of strong support for public schools by voters. Over the past two years, voters also approved about 99 percent of school budgets. Pass rates in 2014 and 2013 were 98.2 percent and 95.3 percent, respectively.
New York State United Teachers is a statewide union with more than 600,000 members in education, human services and health care. NYSUT is affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers, the National Education Association and the AFL-CIO.