Hauppauge board holds budget hearing as parents press over Forest Brook class sizes and playground repairs

HAUPPAUGE, N.Y. — The Hauppauge Union Free School District held a public budget hearing Tuesday, May 13, ahead of the district’s budget vote and board election on May 20, as officials explained the proposed 2025–26 budget, described a ballot proposition tied to an energy performance contract and responded to parents’ concerns about class sizes and playground repairs.

Bridgette Skinner, the district’s assistant superintendent for business and operations, said the 2025–26 proposal “maintains present class sizes and programs,” expands course offerings at the middle and high school, continues student mental‑health programming and includes capital transfers to replace a kindergarten playground at Forest Brook. She told the board the district’s tax levy limit for 2025–26 is 3.25 percent and that state aid is the next‑largest revenue source. The district’s presentation described payroll and benefits as the top three expenditure drivers.

The budget hearing matters because the school budget and Proposition 2 go before voters on Tuesday, May 20; if approved, the budget will set spending, staffing and capital work for the coming school year. Proposition 2 asks voters to permit the district to increase the state‑aid reimbursement rate for an energy performance contract—raising the district’s…