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East Ramapo presents revenue draft showing large state-aid increase and tax cap calculation
Summary
Assistant Superintendent for Business presented a revenue-side draft projecting a near $17 million increase in state aid and outlined the tax levy calculation used to meet the March 1 filing deadline; board members asked for clarification on pilots, BOCES aid and Medicaid reimbursements.
Assistant Superintendent for Business Mr. Stark told the East Ramapo Central School District Board on Monday that the district’s first draft of the revenue budget relies on two large components: property taxes and New York State aid.
Stark said the district’s prior-year tax levy was $162,000,800 and walked the board through the statutory tax-cap calculation that uses the district’s tax-base growth factor, prior-year exemptions and a capped inflation rate (2 percent) to compute a maximum allowable levy. "This is a draft as well," he said, emphasizing the numbers will be finalized before the March 1 filing deadline.
The draft used the state executive aid run for the 2025–26 year and showed foundation aid rising from about $95.8 million to $109.2 million in the executive proposal — a $13.4 million increase that Stark said, combined with other formula and expense-driven aids, produces an overall increase of roughly $16.9 million (about 11.9 percent) in state aid under the executive proposal. Stark and Superintendent Eric DiCarlo attributed part of the increase to updated poverty and enrollment data that better reflect the district and to corrected coding of some English learner counts.
Stark also identified line items the administration will revise before the next meeting: a pilots figure used in past budgets (budgeted at $252,602) that he said is probably too low and a large "other income" placeholder that he intends to reclassify into narrower categories. He proposed adding $3.25 million in interest income (money earned on balances) and reducing tuition revenue and Medicaid estimates to better match recent receipts.
Board members pressed for more detail. One trustee asked whether the executive proposal "$95 million" figure was what the district would actually receive; Stark replied that the executive run is the starting point and the Legislature could change the final aid run. A board member asked whether changes in BOCES spending affect aid; Stark said expense-driven BOCES aid reflects actual prior-year expenditures and will vary year to year. On Medicaid, Stark said the district uses a third-party firm to file claims and that the current budget number reflects an average of recent collections.
Why it matters: The revenue draft sets the ceiling for the expenditure budget under New York’s property tax-cap rules. Stark and DiCarlo said the increases in state aid substantially change the district’s fiscal picture compared with recent years, and the administration will present an updated revenue draft at the next work session.
Stark closed by reiterating the draft status: "We will correct them," he said of the pilot numbers, and promised updated figures at the board's next work session.
The board did not adopt an expenditure budget at this meeting; Stark said further work sessions will present the expenditure side and recommended reserves and fund-balance use.
