QUESTION: What are the chances that the NYS Incentive Aid will be cut once we merge?

What are the chances that the incentive aid that the State of New York provides to districts will be cut or reduced once a merger of the three districts takes place ? 

While no one can predict the future, certainly we can look at the past and see how many times this has ever happened to get a sense of what the chances are it will happen to us now. State incentive aid has been around since the 1920s for districts that chose to merge. In the early 1980's the incentive aid actually doubled for districts that went through with a merger. Since 1983,  33 merged districts have been created, and all received state incentive aid.  

NOT ONE OF THE 33 NEWLY FORMED DISTRICTS LOST THEIR INCENTIVE AID, AND NONE HAD THEIR INCENTIVE AID REDUCED DURING THE TIME FRAME OVER WHICH THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO RECEIVE IT. NOT A SINGLE NEWLY FORMED DISTRICT LOST ANY OF THE INCENTIVE AID THEY HAD BEEN PROJECTED TO RECEIVE - NOT ONE !

So it seems pretty clear given the history of this specific aid, and given the increase in state monies for studying mergers, that the incentive funds that would be allocated to the Herkimer-Ilion-Mohawk School District will in fact be there for the entire period of time they are supposed to be, and in the full amount.