West Windsor-Plainsboro board approves tentative budget submission as health-care costs surge

The West Windsor‑Plainsboro Regional School District Board on Tuesday approved a tentative budget for submission to the County Office, after Superintendent Dr. Adderhold warned that rapidly rising employee health‑care costs are creating unsustainable pressure on the district’s finances.

Dr. Adderhold told the board the district’s all‑in budget is about $232.3 million, with a local share of roughly $205 million, and that health‑care spending alone is budgeted at about $41 million. "We’re going up to 41,000,000 budgeted in health care," he said, arguing that a year‑over‑year increase of about $6 million on the healthcare line forces the district to seek additional tax authority.

The superintendent laid out the arithmetic behind the staff recommendation. Under state caps, the district can raise the general‑fund local tax levy by 2% (about $3.7 million). Given projected spending increases of…