Five consecutive veto messages isn’t stopping state Sen. George Borrello, R-Sunset Bay, from trying to help the Panama Central School District have the remaining $1.1 million of its state Education Department fine forgiven.

Panama was assessed a $4.9 million penalty by the state Education Department that resulted from a late final cost report on a 2005 capital project. In 2005, the district completed a small maintenance project that it believed to be properly documented as “closed.”

In 2012, the district, upon reviewing the state’s website, found that it still had an “open” project on file. This information was not made available to Panama Central School when it was closing out its 2005 building project. In the eyes of the state Education Department, the Panama Central School District neglected to file a final cost report for this building project within the required timeframe. The fine was partially paid through a series of Supplemental Valuation Impact Grants supported by Education Department/Aid to Localities budget bills. Borrello’s legislation will forgive the remaining $1.1 million of the penalty.

Legislation has been passed with overwhelming majorities in both houses of the state Legislature since 2017, but former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Gov. Kathy Hochul have vetoed the legislation each time.

“This bill would forgive the remaining amount, morethan $1.1 million, of the assessed penalty. Without full forgiveness ofthis penalty, the students who attend Panama Central School and the district’s taxpayers will be left holding the bag for administrativeoversights made over a decade ago,” Borrello wrote in his legslative memorandum.

Panama isn’t alone in having legislation that would help its finances vetoed by governors. Hochul vetoed nine separate bills in one day earlier this fall forgiving fines levied against state school districts.

During 2020 state budget budget talks, Sen. Shelley Mayer, D-Yonkers, and Assemblyman Edward Ra, R-Franklin Square, asked Shannon Tahoe, who was then the interim state education commissioner, her opinion on fines for late final cost reports for building projects or late-filed transportation contracts. Tahoe said it was the position of the state Education Department to have one bill that would provide blanket forgiveness for late cost reports.

One year later, legislation providing blanket forgiveness was proposed as part of the budget process but rejected.

“I am deeply disappointed that Governor Hochul vetoed legislation (S.1798/A.6972) which would have released the Panama Central School District from paying the remaining $1.9 million of an unfair New York State Education Department penalty levied 16 years ago. There is zero justification for diverting critically-needed education dollars away from the classroom to pay a bureaucratic fine from almost two decades ago.,” Borrello said in October. “It is disappointing that our new governor has chosen to follow the same path as her predecessor, particularly since legislation that would have instituted blanket forgiveness was proposed as part of the budget process and rejected for political reasons. Therefore, there is no justification for vetoing this bill, which passed unanimously in both houses. “