District finance staff delivered an early budget preview to the Beacon City School District Board on Jan. 12, outlining a preliminary tax-cap estimate, benefit cost pressures and next steps in the budget calendar.

The presenter said allowable growth in the district’s levy is constrained by the state tax-cap formula and, with current assumptions, the district’s projected maximum levy increase is about 3.63%. He cautioned that the figure could change before the March 1 tax-cap filing depending on whether Marabou Spa is removed from the tax rolls into a PILOT arrangement; the city told staff the spa must have a certificate of occupancy by March 1 to move to a PILOT status.

Budget staff flagged benefit-cost drivers: health-insurance premiums were reported to have increased roughly 9.5–10.5% for calendar-year coverage, and pension contribution rates will change materially — Teachers' Retirement System (TRS) contribution rising from 6.59% to 8.75% and Employees' Retirement System (ERS) increasing from roughly 16.5% to 17.6%. The presenter quantified impacts and said the net effect of those changes could still be manageable but required monitoring as budgeting progresses.

On retirements and staffing, staff said about 10 teachers (possibly 11) are expected to retire in June; the district estimated roughly $350,000 in salary/step savings from those retirements but noted recruitment pressures for certain subject areas (two high-school science teachers and two middle-school world-language teachers were singled out as hard-to-recruit positions).

The presenter also discussed Medicare Part B reimbursements for retirees under the Empire Plan and how rising Medicare and insurance costs factor into projection work. He urged the board to watch state-level developments around universal pre-K funding: the current per-child UPK allotment cited was $5,400 and the presenter said state proposals discussed by officials could increase that per-pupil allotment substantially, which would reduce general-fund burden for the district if enacted.

Next steps: staff will refine estimates as premiums and pilot/PILOT status decisions become clearer, will present debt and capital estimates as the budget process advances, and plans a series of budget town halls and a BOCES budget presentation in late February.