Webster Central projects 3% foundation-aid increase, uses $3M in reserves to balance 2025–26 budget

WEBSTER, N.Y. — At a budget workshop on April 8, 2025, Webster Central School District staff presented refined revenue projections and program-level adjustments that produce a balanced 2025–26 budget while using $3 million from reserve accounts.

The district’s presenter, identified in the meeting as Mr. Freeman, told the board the district would assume a 3% increase in Foundation Aid for the coming year and lock that figure into the budget. “We’re going with that 3% and lock that in,” he said, arguing the legislature’s final number is likely to be that figure or close to it.

The matter matters because state aid and local property taxes together make up roughly 91% of district revenue: state aid about 33% and tax revenue about 58%, Freeman said. The district’s preliminary budget total, as presented, is $226,064,025; staff said they had adjusted expenditures and revenues so the plan was balanced without a deficit.

Nut graf: District staff walked the board through how state aid estimates and local tax-rate inputs interact with one another — including expense-based aid categories that are driven by year-end enrollment and final cost reports — and recommended a combination of conservative state-aid assumptions, modest revenue increases, and a $3 million reserve draw to maintain current services.

Key revenue assumptions and projections

- Foundation Aid: Staff proposed using a 3% Foundation Aid increase in the budget model after noting the Assembly’s 2.9% and the Senate’s 3% figures. Freeman said the difference between 2.9% and 3% would be about $46,006.89 for the district and described 3% as a comfortable working assumption.

- Expense-based aids: Transportation aid was projected at about $7.1 million, with staff noting the governor’s October-run number can differ because final aid is based on actual June 30 expenditures. BOCES aid was projected at $6.1 million; building aid was described as especially volatile because final aid depends on capital projects’ final cost reports submitted through June 30, 2026.

- Excess-cost and instructional materials: Staff projected about $1.9 million for excess-cost placements and noted pending legislation that would raise library/ instructional materials aid per pupil from $6.25 to roughly $11.33–$11.50 in proposed bills in the Senate and Assembly.

- Local revenue and reserves: Tax levy assumptions reported to the comptroller remained unchanged (the presentation referenced a levy-limit percentage of 3.19). The district plans a $3,000,000 appropriation from ERS and TRS reserves (described in the presentation as about 6.64% of audited reserve balances) and to keep the assigned fund balance at about 5.5% to mitigate levy pressure. Interest-earning estimates were increased to $500,000 from roughly $150,000 because of an updated investment strategy.

How the numbers are determined and timing caveats

Officials emphasized that many aid lines are determined by data reported after the budget: transportation and BOCES aid depend on June 30 expenditure reports; building aid depends on final project cost submissions; and enrollment-driven aids depend on student counts at the end of the fiscal year. “That will springboard to what we actually get for aid,” Freeman said of the June reporting cycle. He repeatedly cautioned the board that the governor’s October projections are preliminary and that the district’s final aid may move when final data arrives.

Tax-rate drivers and equalization concerns

District staff reviewed how assessments, equalization rates and the levy interact to produce property tax rates. They flagged tentative county equalization estimates showing Webster’s equalization ratio falling from 52% to 48% and a notable drop for Penfield, which staff said could change tax-rate distribution within the district if those figures hold in August. Staff committed to presenting a side-by-side update in August when final equalization and assessment numbers are set.

Operational adjustments and budget trimming

Since the prior workshop, staff reported roughly $622,200 in expenditure reductions resulting from central-office staffing changes, lower-than-expected BOCES transportation and other service costs, and refined course-section and elementary enrollment projections. Staff said that, given current assumptions and the planned reserve use, the budget would not require layoffs and would preserve existing services while reflecting some targeted staffing and contract adjustments.

Next steps and calendar

Staff said the district planned to adopt a budget on April 22, publish full budget materials by May 1, hold a public budget hearing on May 13 and conduct the budget vote on May 20, 2025.

Quotes and board discussion

Board members asked clarifying questions about the timing that determines final aid and the distribution of local sales tax among towns that overlap the district. When a board member asked whether the district’s final aid figure would change after the June reporting, Freeman replied, “No. That’s not going to change,” explaining the district’s finalized projection reflects anticipated June 30 expenditure reporting rather than the governor’s earlier projection. When a council member raised concerns about federal funds potentially being at risk, Freeman said those federal grants are smaller components of the district’s budget and that “not this year” when asked whether federal dollars could affect next year’s state-funded assumptions.

Ending: Staff recommended the board adopt the projection approach to allow work to proceed on staffing and program plans while acknowledging the August recalculation points when final equalization and state-run aid runs are released. The presentation and supporting charts will be posted on the district’s budget web page and staff said they would provide an updated equalization comparison in August.