By Melanie Lekocevic
Capital Region Independent Media
RAVENA-COEYMANS-SELKIRK — The RCS Board of Education voted unanimously Wednesday to approve a proposed $56.9 million budget. The spending plan will next go to the voters in May.
School Business Administrator Jesse Boehme presented the proposed 2025-26 school budget to the board at the March 28 meeting.
The proposed budget, at $56,959,448, is an increase of $2,381,109 compared to last year’s budget. Every school budget is broken down into three components —program expenses, capital and administrative costs.
“Seventy-seven percent of the budget is programming, which is the instructional side of things,” Boehme said.
The tax levy generates the biggest chunk of revenues, at 51%, with state aid representing 39% of the total revenues. Fund balance and other sources represent the remaining 10%.
The $2.3 million budget increase in this year’s proposed spending plan is driven largely by five components of the budget. Contractual obligations, or salary raises, generate the largest increase compared to last year at $1,085,000, with jumps in the cost of health benefits representing $783,000 of the increase. Summer school, retirement contributions and debt, among other factors, account for the rest of the budget increase.
For the past couple of years, federal funds provided as part of pandemic relief paid for summer school for all grade levels, but those funds have been discontinued so it is up to the board to decide whether or not to fund another summer session.
The district did get some good news on the revenue side and is expecting a total increase of $1,692,425 in aid from New York state compared to last school year.
“We did get a significant increase in [Foundation Aid] — around 8.8% or $1.2 million, which is great,” Boehme said. “I did not expect to see anywhere near this amount. This was a large increase in aid.”
Total state aid went from $20,191,876 during the 2024-25 school year to $21,884,301 for the coming school year.
PROPOSED TAX LEVY
Boehme advised the district to propose a budget with the full tax cap allowed by the state without requiring a supermajority of voters’ approval. This year’s tax cap was set at 3.56%, which would raise the tax levy by just over $1 million, to a total of $29,162,647.
Going lower than the full tax cap, combined with a substantial PILOT, or Payment in Lieu of Taxes, expected next year, would negatively impact tax caps in future years, Boehme said.
“If we decide to go lower, and we will have a large PILOT coming in next year, and that large PILOT has an extreme effect on the calculation of our tax levy limit,” Boehme said. “That will decrease it to a point where our tax levy limit will be negative. The higher we go up this year will dampen the blow for next year.”
Compounding the issue is the fact that state aid would likely not increase as much as it did this year.
IMPACT ON TAXPAYERS
For local taxpayers, the impact would depend on the community where they live and the assessed value of their property.
For a home assessed at $100,000, under the proposed budget Coeymans homeowners would see an annual increase of $64, or $5.33 per month. Homeowners in Bethlehem would see an annual increase of $73.02, or $6.08 per month, and New Scotland taxpayers would see a $74.05 annual jump, or $6.17 a month.
New Baltimore homeowners would see the largest tax increase at $126.44 for the year, or $10.54 a month.
“New Baltimore hasn’t done a reassessment in a long time, so the market value of their homes is very low,” Boehme explained. “What the state does is assign equalization rates to certain areas to try to equalize what the market value is in that area. That’s why there is a higher increase [for New Baltimore].”
TWO PROPOSITIONS
In addition to voting on the school budget in May, voters will determine the fate of two additional propositions.
The ballot will include a safety and security project for the district at a cost of $2,016,789.
There will also be a bus purchase proposition on the ballot to buy three 30-passenger vans at $331,910, and one 10-passenger transit EV for $128,930.
NEXT STEPS
A public hearing will be held May 7 to give local residents the opportunity to ask questions or voice opinions on the proposed budget.
The budget vote will take place on Tuesday, May 20, with polls open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the main gym of RCS High School on Route 9W.
