At its regular board meeting on August 7, the Hilton Board of Education ap-proved the tax levy for the 2001-02 school year to be apportioned between the district's four towns: Parma, Greece, Hamlin and Clarkson. The board ap-proved a levy of $20,260,199 which is unchanged from the amount projected in the budget approved by voters in May.

"The 'bare bones' budget recently ap-proved by the State Legislature fell $120,000 short of the state aid amounts projected by the district for its budget," said Steven Ayers, Hilton Assistant Superintendent for Business. "Additional funding is expected to be approved by the legislature in September, however, there are no guarantees. The board felt it was important to maintain the integrity of the levy amount included in the bud-get proposal."

"We cannot wait (until September) for an adoption of our tax levy," he added. "If the legislature does not address the fund-ing shortfall, we will have to seek to make other 'adjustments' in our budget."

Actual tax rates for the 2001-02 school year for Hilton School District residents are: Clarkson - $38.63; Greece - $20.10; Hamlin - $37.08; Parma - $21.53.