Mechanicville City School District proposes $37.35M budget; voters will decide budget and bus bond on May 19

Presenter opened the May 19 public budget hearing for the Mechanicville City School District and summarized the proposed 2026–27 spending plan, saying the proposed budget total is $37,350,893, an increase of $844,925 (2.3%) from last year.

The presenter said the district’s budget follows a three-part format — administrative, program and capital — and that roughly three-quarters of spending (about 74.1%) goes to programs, with remaining shares to administrative and capital costs. She said the majority of revenue is expected to come from state aid (reported in the presentation at about 46%–47%) with taxes providing most of the remainder and the district proposing to use approximately 5.8% of its fund balance to balance the budget.

In describing priorities for next year, the presenter said all current staffing and programming are retained, the district will add a new elementary-school counselor and will continue the recently launched girls lacrosse program. She also said the budget includes continued security upgrades for cameras and doors.

The presentation described capital needs and a plan to replace aging facilities vehicles and school buses. The presenter said the district will ask voters to authorize bonding for four buses (two large, two small), including one wheelchair-accessible bus. She stated the bond cap as "up to $598,000." (An earlier figure of $588,000 also appears in the presentation materials.)

The presenter reviewed required documents available to the public — the budget statement, the district report cards, the property tax report card and salary disclosures — and said exemption reports for taxing jurisdictions are included in the packet and online.

She read aloud the statutory contour of a contingent budget, saying, "the board of education must enact a contingent budget consisting of teacher salaries and ordinary contingent expenses" sufficient to preserve district property and to ensure the health and safety of students and staff. The presenter then explained practical effects if the budget fails: community groups could be charged to use school facilities, the district would be limited in replacing buses or certain equipment to amounts reimbursed by state aid, managerial confidential employees would not receive raises, and some sports or other programs could be cut.

During a question-and-answer period, a resident asked whether the state-aid figures are final. The presenter said the district uses the state's state-aid runs as its baseline but that those numbers can change until Albany finalizes the state budget. When asked what the total would be under a contingency budget, the presenter provided a contingency total of $36,769,746 and said she would provide a line-by-line breakdown later.

Another attendee asked whether the replacement buses would be electric; the presenter replied the planned purchases are diesel and noted state phasing rules will restrict diesel purchases in future years but do not prevent diesel purchases for the district in the immediate cycle.

Voters will see two propositions on the ballot on May 19: the first is the proposed 2026–27 budget that, if approved, allows the district to levy the necessary taxes to meet the spending plan; the second asks voters to authorize bonding for the bus purchases. The presenter also noted two three-year Board of Education seats (candidates Scott Damro and Kelly Piterell) and a five-year public library trustee seat (incumbent Don Marie Robins) on the ballot. Polling will run from noon to 9 p.m. at the Mechanicville City High School gymnasium (enter through the red awning).

The presenter closed the hearing by encouraging turnout for the May 19 vote.