The Rochester City Council voted 7-6 on May 20 to cut $400,000 from the Rochester School Department’s operating budget.

Councilor Walker introduced the motion to reduce the school operating appropriation by $400,000; after a second and brief discussion, the council conducted a roll-call vote. The roll call in the transcript shows seven councilors voting yes and six voting no. Councilors who supported the cut said fiscal restraint is necessary given the city’s budget pressures; councilors opposing the cut said the school district had demonstrated fiscal responsibility and that the council should respect the school board’s independence.

Public commenters addressed the council before the vote. Shannon Vitus, a lifelong Rochester resident and school-department employee, urged the council to pass the school budget as presented, noting what she described as the district’s careful planning under the city tax cap. “I… respectfully and strongly urge you to pass the school district budget as presented,” Vitus told the council during the public hearing.

Susan Rice, a public commenter who said she closely follows procedure, reminded the council of statutory and charter constraints on city control of school operations and argued the school board is the policy-making body for schools. Rice referenced state statutory authority and the Rochester City Charter when urging the council not to micromanage school line items after making an appropriation.

Councilor Walker said the $400,000 reduction is an effort to impose fiscal discipline on operating costs; Walker moved the cut during the council’s operating-budget deliberations. After the motion was seconded, the mayor directed a roll-call vote. The transcript records the roll call with a 7–6 result and the mayor announcing the motion passed.

The council’s reduction adjusts the total appropriation the council forwards to the school district for the upcoming fiscal year; the school board retains responsibility for administration and line-by-line management within that appropriation unless otherwise constrained by statute or charter. Council and district staff indicated further follow-up on how the district will reconcile the cut during its own planning and operations.