Fairport Central School District says staffing and benefits drive 70% of budget as leaders outline 2026–27 planning
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Summary
Superintendent Brett Provenzano and district finance leaders described the year‑round budget process for 2026–27 in an “Under the Hood” workshop, saying salaries and benefits are the largest cost, BOCES and building aid timing shape decisions, and planned facility moves include consolidating ninth grade into the high school in fall 2026–27.
Superintendent Brett Provenzano opened the Fairport Central School District’s “Under the Hood” budget workshop and said the presentation was intended as a roadmap to how the district builds the 2026–27 budget, not the formal budget itself. "This is not an actual presentation of the 20 six‑twenty 7 school year budget. This is, a road map for how we arrive at the annual budget," Provenzano said.
The district’s finance team emphasized that staffing and associated benefits consume the bulk of local spending. "Staffing and benefits make up over 70% of our budget," said Jeremy Nardone, assistant superintendent for business and operations, explaining that salaries, health insurance and retirement contributions (ERS/TRS) are the primary recurring costs the district must manage.
Why it matters: those personnel costs limit the district’s flexibility. Nardone and assistant superintendent for human resources Doug Lauf said rising employer retirement contributions, FICA (7.65% of salaries) and increasing health‑insurance claims are steadily enlarging benefit bars on multi‑year budget charts. The district also uses several budgeting approaches—rollover, per‑pupil allocation and zero‑based budgeting—to evaluate expenses and prepare for contract negotiations with six collective bargaining units.
BOCES, capital aid and transportation aid shape local cost calculations. Nardone described Monroe 1 BOCES as a major partner—particularly for special‑education placements and shared services—and noted the timing of building aid and transfers affects local budgets: aid for 2025–26 spending flows back in 2026–27. He summarized current aid rates presented during the workshop: building aid on capital projects runs roughly in the low‑to‑mid 70% range (about 73.4% cited) over typical 15‑year debt schedules, while transportation aid varied between about 68% and 72% (approximately 69.8% at the time of presentation).
The presentation also reviewed non‑instructional costs such as facilities, utilities, technology infrastructure and transportation. The district manages 12 buildings (eight schools and four district properties) and more than 1.2 million square feet of space; Nardone said those facilities require ongoing maintenance, plowing and custodial services, and that a one‑time spike in facilities expenses appeared in the 2020 fiscal year for COVID‑related PPE and sanitation.
On capital planning, Provenzano described an upcoming consolidation that will move ninth‑grade students into Fairport High School beginning fall 2026–27, saying the Board’s intent is to improve academic access and better align student programming. The district will analyze Balmer Place and other district properties for potential repurposing, sale or lease as part of ongoing efforts to manage facility costs and generate revenue.
What’s next: the district said this workshop is one of more than a dozen public interactions ahead of the May 19 annual budget vote; leaders invited questions via a QR code and a YouTube feedback link and scheduled a follow‑up session focused on revenues.
Attribution: information and direct quotations above come from statements by Superintendent Brett Provenzano, Jeremy Nardone (assistant superintendent for business and operations) and Doug Lauf (assistant superintendent for human resources) during the district’s public “Under the Hood” budget session.