East Ramapo board adopts $348 million budget after weeks of dispute over prior year's levy

The East Ramapo Central School District Board of Education voted to adopt a $348 million spending plan for the 2025–26 school year on April 8, approving a proposed tax levy of roughly $162 million after extended public and board debate over a commissioner-added increase from last year.

Superintendent DiCarlo told the board the budget represents a “responsible budget,” prepared on a zero-based approach that reasks departments for needs rather than rolling prior allocations forward. He and Assistant Superintendent Stark said the draft uses about $11.8 million of fund balance, includes roughly $5.5 million for capital work such as parking-lot repairs, and relies on an increase of about $16 million in state aid to avoid raising the levy.

The vote followed more than two hours of discussion in which several trustees, community members and the district’s fiscal monitor expressed competing concerns. Trustee Gruber and others said the public never approved an additional 4.38 percentage points that was added to the levy last year and urged lowering the levy now and using reserves instead. The district’s fiscal monitor, Manuel Farr, and another monitor argued a lower levy funded by increased use of reserves would raise long-term fiscal risk because federal and state aid levels are uncertain.

Board members repeatedly discussed legal and practical limits. Monitors referenced ongoing uncertainty over recent federal guidance affecting ESSER/late-liquidation reimbursements — the district reported roughly $23 million of completed ESSER-funded work for which about $9.6 million had been applied for reimbursement but is now exposed to federal change. Monitors said possible federal reductions mean reserves may be needed to weather funding changes.

Several trustees emphasized political and community anger over last year’s levy increase, which many residents said was imposed without voter approval. Some board members said they supported the programmatic investments in the superintendent’s budget yet wanted the levy returned to the level voters approved in the prior year. The board ultimately approved the budget as presented; the motion to adopt the budget passed on the roll call vote.

Fiscal monitors told the board they would forward their analysis and recommendation to the commissioner, as required under the monitor legislation. Board members were told the commissioner may respond before the district’s next meeting; the board also discussed a final opportunity to adjust the budget at the April 22 meeting if needed to meet legal advertising and ballot deadlines for the May 20 vote.

Board President Rose and Superintendent DiCarlo encouraged the community to review the district’s budget materials online, including detailed code-level documentation that the administration said will be published after board adoption. The district also noted the state comptroller conducted a non-audit review of the current-year budget process and issued findings about recordkeeping and documentation that the administration said it is addressing to improve transparency.

The budget adoption does not resolve the related legal and political questions about last year’s commissioner action; the board noted an appeal to the commissioner remained pending and that the district had not yet received a final decision.

The board set April 22 as the next regular meeting and April 23 as a special meeting; election and budget vote materials will be prepared for the public information packets ahead of the May 20 budget vote.