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Preliminary Ossining budget flags $2.1M spike in health insurance, debt service to rise with BANs
Summary
Business official Alita McCoy told the board the 2026–27 preview shows a roughly $4M salary increase and a $2.1M jump in health‑insurance costs; debt service is projected to rise (temporary BANs for district bond and the library), prompting planned use of reserves and caution about fund‑balance reliance.
Alita McCoy, the district’s business official, walked trustees through a preliminary 2026–27 budget picture on Feb. 4 that highlighted three near‑term fiscal pressures: compensation rollovers, sharply rising health‑insurance costs, and higher debt‑service expenses tied to bond‑anticipation notes.
"So right now we're seeing about a $4 million increase in salaries," McCoy said, and she added that the district is estimating a roughly $2.1 million increase in health‑insurance costs for the coming year. The administration also noted lower projected interest earnings and mixed signals on state aid: while foundation aid shows a modest increase (+$430,000), finalized state aid runs indicate an overall decline of approximately $260,580 compared with earlier projections.
McCoy said preliminary debt‑service projections show an increase from roughly $4 million to nearly $10 million, driven by short‑term BANs (bond‑anticipation notes) tied to the district bond schedule and a separate BAN request from the library. To bridge the projected budget‑to‑budget gap the staff are planning a combination of moderate use of reserves (including an identified $3.8 million capital‑reserve draw), limited transfers to capital and other one‑time offsets. McCoy cautioned the board that last year’s larger one‑time fund‑balance use should not become recurring: "We need to step off our use of fund balance," Mary Fox Alter added in the presentation, noting the district’s desire to reduce reliance on one‑time monies.
Trustees asked for more detail about the tax cap calculation (due March 1) and the expected pattern of debt service after BANs convert to longer‑term borrowing; staff said detailed schedules and project lists will be provided as project budgets are finalized.
McCoy described next steps as refining project costs, confirming state aid runs and finalizing the tax‑cap calculation; trustees will receive a more granular packet when the administration presents school‑level allocations and final numbers in March.
The board held no policy vote tied to the budget preview; McCoy and the superintendent described the presentation as an update and an invitation to provide guidance as staff refine options.
