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Middletown board adopts tentative 2026–27 budget after narrow vote to include healthcare levy adjustment
Summary
After heated debate and a long public comment period, the Middletown Township Board of Education voted to include a 1.07% health-care levy adjustment and adopted a tentative 2026–27 budget that holds a 2% tax-levy increase; administration said the package preserves core programs while addressing a projected gap.
The Middletown Township Board of Education late Tuesday approved a tentative 2026–27 budget that holds a 2% tax-levy increase and—by roll-call vote—included the district’s optional 1.07% health-care cost adjustment.
Business administrator Amy Daryy told the board the package funds core instruction and support services while aiming to close a projected revenue gap. “The proposed 2026–27 budget maintains all of the programs and services that have been put in place to benefit our students,” she said during the presentation, noting the levy and an estimated $3.5 million in additional revenue tied to the 2% increase.
Nut graf: The vote followed hours of presentation, line-item questions from trustees and more than three hours of public comment—dominated by families and teachers opposing an administration plan to consolidate several schools. Supporters of the budget said the healthcare adjustment (about $1.9 million) reduces the shortfall and limits disruptive program cuts; opponents said the board adopted major policy changes without independent cost studies or full implementation plans.
Daryy described the district’s revenue mix as roughly 90% local levy, about 8% state aid and 2% other revenue, and explained that state aid runs under caps that can limit year-to-year increases. She also said special education “extraordinary aid” is variable and typically reimburses a portion of the district’s outlays. Under the figures shown, adding the health-care adjustment reduced the immediate budget gap to roughly $417,000, board discussion showed.
Board members pressed for more detailed, line-by-line schedules; several asked for alternate scenarios that would use fund balance or deeper one-time cuts instead of permanent reductions. One trustee said earlier in the meeting that the finance committee had not reached consensus and called for a full-board conversation before final adoption.
The board’s adoption of the numbers is tentative: the district must submit the tentative budget to the New Jersey Department of Education by the statutory deadline and then hold a public hearing and final adoption between April 24 and May 7. Administrators said they expect to present and advertise a final budget on the April 28 voting agenda.
Ending: The administration said it will update published figures to reflect the health-care adjustment and continue to answer line-item questions requested by trustees. The board’s final vote on the budget is scheduled after the required public hearing and county/Doe review.
