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Erie City School District board accepts $293 million proposed budget and approves routine business items
Summary
The Erie City School District board on May 14 accepted a proposed $293,000,000 2025–26 budget with no tax increase and approved a set of routine motions including bills, payroll and awards.
The Erie City School District board of directors accepted a proposed $293,000,000 preliminary budget for the 2025–26 school year and approved a package of routine motions at its May 14 regular meeting.
The budget, presented by Superintendent Brian Pulido, was described by Pulido as “very welcome news for our taxpayers.” He said the preliminary plan includes no tax increase and that, “Due to the homestead tax exemption, property taxes on most homes will actually go down by about $60 in this final budget, with a 0% tax increase.” The board voted to accept the proposed final budget as part of supplemental new business.
Why it matters: The board’s acceptance of the proposed final budget begins the formal local review and adoption process for the district’s spending and revenue plan for 2025–26. The board’s action preserves current tax rates while noting the homestead exemption’s effect on typical residential bills.
Key votes and actions - Approve report of the secretary: Motion by Director Cooley; second by Director Gillespie. Roll-call vote: Harkins, Nichols, Sharif, Samatangelo (Amatangelo), Cooley, Devlin, Gillespie, Graff and Brennaman — all recorded as yes. Outcome: approved.
- Approve report of the superintendent (as presented): Motion by Mister Sharif; second by Miss Gillespie. Outcome: approved by voice vote.
- Approve reports of committees and liaisons: Motion by Mister Sharif; second by Miss Amatangelo. Outcome: approved by voice vote.
- Approve agenda items under “new business” (item 7): Motion recorded as moved by Miss Samatangelo and second by Miss Cooley. Roll-call vote: Harkins, Nichols, Sharif, Samatangelo, Cooley, Devlin, Gillespie, Graff and Brennaman — all recorded as yes. Outcome: approved.
- Accept proposed final budget and related supplemental new-business items (item 8): Motion by Miss Gillespie; second by Miss Graff. Roll-call vote: Harkins, Nichols, Sharif, Samatangelo, Cooley, Devlin, Gillespie, Graff and Brennaman — all recorded as yes. Outcome: accepted (proposed final budget moved forward).
- Approve county repository sales and separations (item 9): Motion by Mister Harkins; second by Miss Amatangelo. Board President Jay Brennaman publicly stated he would abstain because he sits on the board of a related entity (JFK). Roll-call vote recorded as yes from the remaining directors; outcome: approved (8 yes, 1 abstain).
- Approve scheduled bills (item 10.01): Motion by Miss Graff; second by Mister Sharif. Roll-call vote: Harkins — yes; Nichols — yes; Sharif — yes; Amatangelo — yes; Cooley — yes; Devlin — abstain; Gillespie — abstain; Graff — yes; Brennaman — yes. Outcome: approved (7 yes, 2 abstain).
- Approve board-authorized payrolls (item 10.02): Motion by Mister Sharif; second by Miss Cooley. Roll-call vote: unanimous yes among voting members recorded. Outcome: approved.
- Approve awards and bids as a single package (item 11): Motion by Miss Gillespie; second by Mister Sharif. Roll-call vote: unanimous yes among voting members recorded. Outcome: approved.
What the board did not change: The board did not raise tax rates; the budget acceptance at the meeting was the board’s acceptance of the proposed final budget to move forward (the transcript records acceptance of the proposed final budget but does not indicate final adoption language beyond acceptance). The superintendent framed the budget as preliminary and described the homestead exemption’s effect on typical homeowner bills.
Who spoke: Superintendent Brian Pulido presented the budget. Board President Jay Brennaman presided. Multiple board directors moved, seconded and voted on motions; those directors appear in roll-call records and are listed above.
Next steps: The board’s acceptance of the proposed final budget advances the district’s budgeting process; the transcript does not specify a final adoption date or any specified public hearing schedule in the meeting record.
Votes provenance (selected transcript excerpts): The budget presentation begins when Superintendent Brian Pulido introduced the proposed budget and described it as a $293,000,000 preliminary budget with no tax increase (meeting transcript segment beginning at 1297.38). The board’s roll-call vote accepting the supplemental items that included the proposed final budget occurs in the sequence beginning at 4855.22 through 4877.32 in the meeting record.
