Pelham UFSD outlines $96.29M budget, multi-part bond package and property purchase ahead of May 20 vote

Cheryl Champ, superintendent of the Pelham Union Free School District, presented details of the district's proposed $96,290,000 spending plan, a separate property-purchase proposition and a four-part capital bond package at a community meeting ahead of a May 20 ballot.

Champ said the spending plan, the house-purchase proposition and four bond propositions will appear on the same ballot and that the district is encouraging residents to review materials and vote. "We need to keep the lights on, the heat on, and the water out," she said of the core infrastructure work in the bond package.

The budget proposal and bond package matter for taxpayers because they affect the district's tax levy and capital borrowing. Champ said the district can pursue some borrowing on a "tax-neutral" basis because two prior debt tranches drop off over the next few years, producing roughly $65 million in tax-neutral borrowing capacity; she also said recent building projects have produced a roughly $3 million balance in the district's debt service reserve that helps lower near-term levy changes.

Key points of the proposed operating budget

- Total proposed appropriations: $96,290,000. - Primary cost drivers: salaries and benefits, which Champ said represent about 76% of the budget. - Staffing: the district projects a net reduction of about 4.61 full-time equivalent positions through attrition; Champ said 13 teachers plan to retire this year. - Tax levy: the board adopted a proposed allowable tax levy increase of 3.48% to present to voters; the operating levy portion is the part subject to the state tax-cap calculation, while certain capital items are treated as capital exclusions, Champ said. - Other program…