Middletown school officials present $277.1 million budget proposal, estimate 2.9% tax levy increase

Superintendent Creedon and district staff presented a $277,122,504 proposed budget for the 2025-26 school year to the Enlarged City School District of Middletown Board of Education on April 10, 2025, saying the plan would not use fund balance and anticipates a 2.9% tax-levy increase.

District presenters told the board the plan relies on the state’s January aid run and on estimates that put total state aid at about $193 million this year, with roughly $190 million of that available for operating purposes after excluding universal prekindergarten funds. Local tax revenue is projected at a little more than $75 million; other revenues are estimated at about 3.2% of the total. The district said the proposed spending increase is roughly $14.5 million, or 5.5% over the prior year — driven largely by contractual costs, special-education placements, transportation and health-care expenses.

The budget presentation framed the proposal as conservative on reserves: district officials said they are not planning to use fund balance or other reserves in the adopted plan, noting that drawing down reserves in prior years had created operating pressure. The presenters emphasized contingency rules under state law that would apply if voters reject the budget, including reverting to the prior year’s levy and limits on new equipment purchases and facilities use.

District officials walked the board through the tax-cap calculation and said the proposal remains under the cap; in that case, passage requires a simple majority of votes (50% plus one). The presenters said the district’s maximum statutory levy increase could be as high as 4.56% under the tax-cap formula, but the proposal before the board represents a 2.9% levy increase (about $2.1 million). They repeated that final levy and aid figures depend on the state budget, which had been extended and not finalized at the time of the presentation.

Board members asked about downside scenarios if anticipated state or federal revenues do not materialize. District staff said precise impacts would depend on which revenue streams changed; they flagged that food and nutrition funding — roughly $6 million annually for free meals — and roughly $5 million in federal salary-related reimbursements are among larger, variable items that could require programmatic adjustments if funding were reduced.

Officials reviewed the schedule for remaining steps in the budget process: a final community presentation on April 24, a budget hearing on May 8, a “Meet the Candidates” event on May 6, and the budget vote on Tuesday, May 20; they also noted the district must adopt its final budget prior to the vote. Registration and voting locations and the BOCES budget vote schedule were reviewed as well.

The board did not take a final vote on the budget at the April 10 meeting; members thanked staff for the presentation and said they will watch for changes once the state finalizes its budget.