Suffern board reviews proposed 3.48% tax-levy budget, outlines program additions and planned fall capital project

Superintendent and finance staff presented the district's proposed 2026'1 budget framework and explained why the Board is recommending a 3.48% tax-levy increase rather than a larger 4.05% levy. The Board described the lower levy as a way to hold down the immediate tax burden while planning a fall capital referendum to fund infrastructure needs.

Dr. Gundersen (superintendent) framed the budget as linked to the district's two-year blueprint priorities: rigorous instruction, student supports and operational excellence. He said the larger levy option would have funded an additional $700,000 transfer to capital reserves for roofs, boilers and facility improvements; the smaller 3.48% levy reduces that immediate transfer and relies on a planned capital project in the fall to address major infrastructure needs.

Chief financial officer Dr. Castellane reviewed program and staffing impacts the proposed budget would allow if approved: reintroducing a high-school wood-technology program, expanding career and technology pathways, retaining AP courses and adding an AP cybersecurity offering, expanding instructional-coaching positions and a STEM special for grades 3'5, adding a district assistant principal focused on the two largest elementary schools (Cherry Lane and R.P. Connor), and expanding the two-way dual-language program into grade 2 next year with phased growth thereafter. He also said the budget would support unified sports (basketball) and a dedicated girls-wrestling program.

The presentation included planned efficiencies: a net reduction of three professional staff positions through attrition/restructuring, efforts to reduce instructional software redundancies, additional rental revenues from BOCES programs, and enhanced residency verification. On residency checks, district staff said they have engaged a third-party provider to investigate residency and that process has "resulted in over a dozen families having to remove their children from the Suffern Central schools," a claim the district offered in explanation of projected enrollment and revenue adjustments.

Transportation and procurement were highlighted as an area of uncertainty. Dr. Castellane described a planned multi-year contract/RFP for buses designed to provide better data for long-term planning, and to include language to accommodate EV buses and related state waivers. He cited an example vendor EV-bus purchase price of about $430,000 versus a conventional bus price of about $146,000 to illustrate the magnitude of potential cost differences; he attributed that figure to vendor experience rather than to a district purchase.

Votes and next steps: Board members were reminded that the district's budget vote is scheduled for May 19 (polls open 6 a.m.–9 p.m.). Several board members urged turnout. The meeting record shows approval of routine minutes and a later consent agenda by voice vote; where voice votes were recorded, no detailed roll-call tallies were read into the meeting minutes in open session.

Why it matters: The proposed 3.48% levy funds classroom priorities while deferring some capital spending to a fall referendum; it also signals program investments that would affect staffing and course offerings. Several budget details (exact dollar amounts for some proposed new positions and the exact count of residency removals) were described verbally but were not provided as a detailed line-by-line attachment in the meeting transcript.