By DON HEPPNER

Residents in the Bedford Central School District can expect a significant increase in school taxes due solely to a change in accounting procedures mandated through the New York State comptroller's office. The tax increase in the budget due to that accounting change could amount to 4 percent per property owner, and would go toward funding the district's retirement plans.

The state mandate, issued through the New York State comptroller's office, to go from a cash basis to an accrued basis of accounting will require the district to book retirement expenses of $2.2 million in June of this year. That means the bill gets paid twice during this school year. The district already paid the retirement fund in September, October, and November 2004.

"That's an expense of $2.2 million that I didn't expect to have," Mark Betz, assistant superintendent and business manager of the Bedford Central School district said. "Where is that money going to come from?"

The teachers' retirement fund is only part of the problem. The employees' retirement system works differently, according to Mr. Betz. The employees' retirement system is on an April 1 to March 31 fiscal year as opposed to the teachers' fund, which is on a July 1 to June 30 fiscal year.

"When I paid the bill to the employees' retirement system this year, I paid the bill on salaries that were from last year's April 1, 2004 through March 31, 2005," Mr. Betz said. "Because the state wants want me to accrue the expenses for my fiscal year, I will have to take April, May, and June and figure out what the retirement fund contribution to the employees' retirement plan should be and set aside that amount for that three-month period in my fiscal."

Mr. Betz said he doesn't know what that number will be, but whatever it is, it is more than he anticipated having to pay this year. The district will book the expenses as they are supposed to, but other projects could be put on hold.

"I think we will have the fund balance to book these expenses," he said. "I think we will, but it is going to wipe out that fund balance that we thought we were going to have to do a number of things."

Some of the things Mr. Betz said he hoped to do with the fund balance was use it to keep next year's increase down. The district had been working on a plan to get approval to pay for some capital projects that went over budget because steel prices increased along with concrete prices.

Bedford Central elected to go on a cash basis because the budget process had more certainty, according to Mr. Betz. The advantage to this, according to Mr. Betz, is that it is more accurate in terms of budget projections.

"For the retirement plan, for instance, the district already knows what the salaries were for the previous year, and we multiply those salaries by a given rate determined by the fund and the cost for the pension plan is developed," Mr. Betz said. "Since we know what the salaries are and what the rates are, we can go to the public and tell them what the costs are going to be."

Certified salaries for district teachers and administrators totaled $38.5 million in-the?003-4=-sehooh year. That total was multiplied by 5.63 percent, the required multiple, and that gives the charge paid to the retirement system.

"That has been paid in September, October, and November," Mr. Betz said. "That is what I would have paid next year to cover the cost. It's almost $2.2 million, and I charge it to my 2005-6. Now the controller-is saying that we fully accrue our costs and we have to pay it this year."

The accounting change will also adversely impact the way bills are paid next year. "Now when I budget for next year, I will have to accrue and expense the effect of higher salaries and more hires."

Next year's multiplier is not the 5.63 multiplier used this year and preceding years, but a higher rate of 7.5 or 8 percent, Mr. Betz said, which-will further raise the-burden on the district and its taxpayers.

Without the fund balance to lower taxes, the equalization rate could have a more dramatic effect on some residents. Mount Kisco's equalization rate went up last year and is expected to take another jump this year, which will exacerbate the accounting change.

Since the impact of the accounting change is so devastating, Mr. Betz intends to fight the state's decision and hopes to meet with state legislators to plead his case. "I doubt there is any way to influence this decision without the involvement of the legislature," Mr. Betz said.

The irony is that the state is not looking for the cash to be paid. The change in accounting principles means they are just insisting that the funds are booked, which means the funds cannot be used for anything but the booked expense.

Mr. Betz will be meeting with state representatives to seek relief from the state, although he said he was not optimistic about the legislature involvement with the district's plight.