Long Island school districts will get more than $270 million in additional state aid for the 2025-26 academic year — up nearly 5.4% from the current year — as part of a state budget that will provide a growing share of the region’s education funding.The financial package for Nassau and Suffolk counties, totaling nearly $5.3 billion, represents a $42 million increase from Gov. Kathy Hochul’s original budget proposal in January. John Hildebrand and Michael R. Ebert report in NEWSDAY that in addition to extra money for school operations, new legislation agreed to by the governor and legislative leaders would also provide for free school meals for all students statewide. Another agreement would impose a bell-to-bell ban on students’ use of smartphones starting in September.Albany lawmakers passed the state budget, which included a school-aid package totaling more than $37 billion statewide, last night. The latest district-by-district figures were posted on the Assembly's website late Wednesday night, and include all money distributed to schools via numerical formulas. They do not include competitive grants. Budget approval came more than 30 days late. The state's legal deadline was April 1.Hochul has defended the extra time spent on budget negotiations, saying that “good things take time.” For example, the governor cited the budget's inclusion of expanded family tax credits covering an estimated 355,000 children on Long Island alone.***Both houses of the New York State legislature passed Gov. Kathy Hochul’s $254 billion state budget package last night following days of debate and over a month delay past the April 1 deadline. Regional school leaders said that the state’s tardiness made it harder for districts to do their own budget planning, because they didn’t know exactly how much state funding would be available next year.Under state rules, districts were required this year to complete budget proposals by April 25. Public voting on those plans is scheduled for May 20. John Hildebrand and Michael R. Ebert report in NEWSDAY that out of Long Island's 124 districts, 108 will receive expanded aid under Albany's posted plan. Most districts will see modest gains."We are grateful that the budget has finally been approved," said Robert Vecchio, executive director of the Nassau-Suffolk School Boards Association.Vecchio added that his organization would advocate in the future for a return to on-time state budgets, so that schools have "all the information they need to meet state required deadlines."***This evening, a class of 7 honorees will be inducted to the Southampton High School Wall of Distinction which recognizes and celebrates alumni, coaches, teachers, administrators and teams who have had a positive impact on the district and community at large.Founded in 2014, the 2025 Southampton Wall of Distinction inductees are:<ul><li>Bruno “David” Dull</li><li>Kara Romanosky Williams</li><li>Terry Stubelek</li><li>Judy Johnson </li><li>Kathleen Masterson</li><li>Herm Lamison</li><li>The S.H.S. 1982 field hockey championship team</li></ul> The induction ceremony will begin today at 6 p.m. in the Southampton High School auditorium, followed by a reception.This evening’s event is free and open to the public.***The traffic experiment conducted for two weeks by Southampton Town and Suffolk County concluded on Friday, May 2, with what Southampton Highway Superintendent Charlie McArdle described as “the best day yet” in terms of the smoothness with which afternoon traffic flowed into and through the County Road 39 corridor between Water Mill and Sunrise Highway. Michael Wright reports on 27east.com that in the wake of the experiment McArdle said he expects the Town of Southampton will make a formal pitch to Suffolk County to find a way to adopt permanent...

7 out of 26 LI water districts had at least one "forever chemical" over federal limit