The South Colonie Central School District continues with its fiscal planning as district leaders presented the second draft of the proposed 2024-25 budget to the Board of Education on Tuesday, April 9.
South Colonie’s focus during the planning process has been to maintain programming at the current level and add programs that prioritize equitable academic needs and access to services for students. Other priorities include the long term sustainability of programs and facilities for the next generation of Colonie.
The second draft of the budget totals $128,785,118, representing a budget-to-budget change of +$6,590,416, or 5.39%, compared to the current school year.
The second draft of the spending plan outlines a balanced budget of revenue and expenditures. Between the first and second drafts, district leaders assigned additional fund balance to offset the gap.The district's estimated tax levy is set for 2.99%, below the tax levy limit of 3.1651%.
School Bus Purchase
In addition to voting on the school budget on May 21, South Colonie residents will be asked to consider authorizing the purchase of 9 replacement school buses of various sizes—six 66 passenger buses, two 16 passenger buses, one 42 passenger bus — at an overall cost not to exceed $1,390,000.
The bus purchase is part of an ongoing bus replacement plan designed to ensure students are transported on buses that meet the latest safety standards while allowing the district to phase out older, high mileage vehicles to avoid the cost inefficiencies related to keeping them in service. Bus purchases are financed over a five year period and aided simultaneously. This proposition has minimal tax impact expected to begin in 2025-26.
State and Federal Aid
On Jan. 16, Gov. Kathy Hochul outlined the fiscal year 2024 executive budget proposal. The release of the Executive Budget Proposal marked the formal beginning of the annual state budget process which is followed by negotiations between the governor and the state Legislature. The state aid projections from the Executive Budget Proposal indicated South Colonie would be receiving an estimated $400,000 less than anticipated with running the Foundation Aid formula at current law. Negotiations between the legislature and Gov. Hochul are ongoing, potentially affecting the district's final aid allocation. If the district receives additional Foundation Aid in the final state budget, it plans to reduce the amount of appropriated fund balance. The deadline for an on-time budget delivery from the state was April 1, but as of April 10, the final budget had not been delivered.
Next Steps
The South Colonie Board of Education will work with district leaders and administrators collaboratively to fine tune the second draft budget. The South Colonie Board of Education is set to approve the third and final draft of the budget during its regularly scheduled board meeting on Wednesday, April 24 at the South Colonie District Offices. Members of the community are invited to attend but may also participate by viewing the live stream of the meeting on the district's YouTube channel.
Budget Vote Details
Residents will have the opportunity to vote on the proposed budget, bus proposition, and Board of Education seats on Tuesday, May 21, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. at their designated polling location (Sand Creek or Lisha Kill Middle Schools).
For more information and updates on the budget development process, please visit the budget section of the website.
Second Draft 2024-25 Budget
Link to second draft budget presentation here.
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