Freehold Township board advances $94.45 million tentative budget with staffing and capital priorities

The Freehold Township School District presented a tentative 2025–26 operating package totaling $94,454,654 and the board advanced the budget to the county office for approval, the district’s business administrator told the board.

The package includes funding for additional classroom staff, expanded support positions and a set of capital and facilities purchases. The administration said state aid for Fund 10 rose about $351,000 and the budget factors a 10% increase in health-care costs.

The district plans to add two full-time teachers (one tied to an expanded special-education/ELI classroom at Catena and one elementary teacher to address anticipated enrollment), three full-time teacher assistants and an additional middle-school related-arts position. The administration also proposes a facilities hire — described as a custodial supervisor — to give managers more daytime coverage and oversight.

Facilities and operations items in the tentative budget include three new buses, additional security cameras (particularly at elementary schools), replacement vehicles and equipment (two vehicles, commercial mower, and two commercial floor scrubbers), continued Chromebook and workstation replacements, and a move from classroom printers to a centralized print-management system.

The presentation noted several one-time or timing-driven budget changes. Mold remediation at O'Donovan required earlier-than-expected outlays; the administration said it pulled $700,000 from maintenance reserve for the 2024–25 year to cover remediation and that prior‑year purchase orders totaling about $2.6 million carry over and inflate the 2024–25 to 2025–26 comparison.

The administration also gave these specifics: - Charter-school tuition for two students is budgeted at $45,007.58. - Energy costs are budgeted with an assumption of about a 25% rise for electricity and roughly 9–10% for natural gas. - The district plans to pursue a 60/40 ROD grant split for some rooftop unit replacements, with the district funding roughly 60% and the state covering the remainder. - A proposed bus card-swiping system would allow transportation staff to verify riders quickly; implementation procedures and replacement/lost-card policies would be set if the program moves ahead.

On tax impact, the business administrator said the district’s share of the township tax rate would decrease by about 5.8% under the proposed levy and that the “average household” with an assessed value of $677,000 would see about a $210 decrease in the district portion of the tax bill. The administration said the overall package reflects the district taking a 2% tax levy increase plus a health‑care adjustment that, when combined with state aid and other revenues, produces the levy shown in the tentative budget.

Next steps, as presented, call for the board to submit the tentative budget to the county office and advertise it in the Asbury Park Press on April 25, followed by the district’s public hearing on April 29 at 7 p.m.

Board members asked questions during the presentation about staffing choices, transportation procedures and timing of capital work; the administration described the staffing changes as contingent on continued state aid and enrollment decisions. The board voted to advance the tentative budget during the finance motion later in the meeting.

"The state says, whatever money that you can bring into your budget from a revenue side, you could spend it," the business administrator said, describing how state aid and allowable adjustments affect local decisions.

If the county office signs the tentative budget, the district will publish the legally required advertisement and hold the final public hearing before approving a final budget.