The future of two Fulton County school districts will be decided on Tuesday. As YNN's Maria Valvanis explains, residents in the Mayfield and Northville school districts will be deciding whether the findings of a two year merger study were worth the time.

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FULTON COUNTY, N.Y. -- Northville Superintendent Kathy Dougherty said, "Overall, this is an opportunity to take two strong districts and make one even stronger district."

Residents in the Mayfield and Northville Central School Districts will vote Tuesday on whether to move forward with merger plans.

Dougherty said, "Some of the pros are fiscal stability, for 15 years or so. There’s an incentive of close to $19 million the districts would be paid in order to do this."

"Taxes on a $100,000 home in Mayfield would go down nearly $500, a substantial saving, and in Northville, they would maintain a stable tax rate," said Mayfield Superintendent Paul Williamsen.

Over the past five years, both districts have cut a total of 55 employees and future projected budgets show the potential for more jobs and extracurricular activities also being cut.

"If we don't do this, we're looking at in Mayfield alone, an $850,000 shortfall in the 2013-2014 school year," said Williamsen.

If the merger happens, all schools will remain open. Kindergarten through fifth grade students will stay in their designated school, while sixth through eighth graders will attend Northville and ninth through twelfth graders will report to Mayfield.

Mayfield student Mario Quintana said, "Overall, them coming over to us and us coming over to them, it'd be weird, but we'd have to get use to it."

And both school sports fields would also remain being used, likely with the varsity playing in Mayfield, while the modified sports play in Northville.

The vote must pass in both districts in order to move forward to a binding agreement vote, scheduled for next month.

If that vote passes, the districts will officially combine July 1st, 2013.

"It would actually be pretty awesome. More people to hang out with," said Quintana.