Three Village BAC weighs $7.6 million budget gap, start‑time change and staffing cuts

Three Village Central School District staff told the district’s Budget Advisory Committee that the district faces a budget gap of about $7.6 million and must choose among making staffing cuts, using reserves, postponing the planned later start time for some schools, or finding other revenue.

The presentation to the Budget Advisory Committee (BAC) laid out the numbers and options: the start‑time change approved earlier by the board would require roughly six additional large buses and three mini‑buses and cost just over $1 million next year, while the grade reconfiguration the board approved is projected to save about $800,000–$900,000. District staff said anticipated retirements could yield several million dollars in savings but that retirements are not guaranteed.

District staff described why the options matter. The budget document the BAC received shows the board’s current baseline includes the start‑time change within a $7.6 million shortfall. Staff said projected retirements and identified reductions would reduce that gap substantially: expected…