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Holmdel school board flags $1.7M shortfall; courtesy busing eyed for cuts
Summary
Board members said transportation costs have doubled and the district may need to cut courtesy busing — which serves roughly 741 students — or use limited banked tax levy capacity to balance the budget as state aid figures remain pending.
The Holmdel Township School District’s budget discussion on Feb. 20 focused on steep transportation cost increases and the possibility of eliminating courtesy busing to close an estimated $1.75 million gap.
Board member and Budget and Finance Committee Chair Anthony Lopresti said the district is preparing for “significant financial challenges,” noting that transportation costs have risen from about $2.5 million to over $5 million. “We have flat budgets for all discretionary lines,” Lopresti said, “and recently transferred our employee benefits to a private carrier, which resulted in a half‑million dollar savings.”
Why it matters: The board said transportation is now the single largest discretionary pressure on the district budget and that the 2% property‑tax levy cap limits the district’s room to raise local revenue. Lopresti and other members described courtesy busing — a nonrequired service that Holmdel offers to families — as one of the few discretionary lines remaining that could be trimmed without directly reducing core instruction.
Board discussion and context
Lopresti provided specific figures during the Committee of the Whole meeting: transportation spending escalated from roughly $2,500,000 to more than $5,000,000 in recent years. He said the district could tap roughly $1,300,000 in banked cap that accumulated after two consecutive 0% budget increases, but that banked capacity will not be available for the 2026‑27 school year. Without additional support from the township, Lopresti said, the district faces “a deficit of approximately $1,750,000.”
He described courtesy busing as typically serving between 700 and 800 students across Holmdel’s schools at an annual cost between $600,000 and $800,000. Lopresti said the board has formally requested township committee leaders consider supporting the service.
Board members emphasized the tradeoffs. Member Chris Buckley, who leads the personnel committee, said reducing courtesy busing would be “preferable to eliminating teachers” but acknowledged the political sensitivity. Another board member noted many families rely on the perk for convenience and safety; Lopresti read a breakdown of riders by school that listed roughly 741 courtesy riders districtwide and per‑school counts mentioned by administration.
Next steps and deadlines
The board scheduled a Budget and Finance Committee meeting for March 11 to review the draft budget. Lopresti said the district is awaiting the governor’s budget address and then the state aid notice; those state numbers are expected in the 48 hours after the governor’s address and are central to the district’s final balancing calculations.
No final budget decisions were adopted at the meeting. The board instructed staff to continue modeling scenarios that include (a) using remaining banked cap for one more year, (b) pursuing township support for courtesy busing, or (c) program and staffing reductions if town or state support does not materialize.
Ending
Board members asked administration to provide frequent public updates as budget modeling continues and state aid figures arrive. Lopresti closed by telling the community the coming budget cycles will require “tough decisions” and promised to share analysis and community presentations in the weeks ahead.
