On Tuesday, May 21, 2024, Valley Central School District residents can vote on the proposed 2024-2025 budget of $129,300,000. The budget-to-budget increase is 2.74% and a tax levy of 2.99% although the allowable tax levy (by tax levy limit calculation) was 5.66%, thus providing a tax saving to every district taxpayer. Historically in NYS, 99% of budgets that stay within the allowable tax levy are passed. Valley Central is one of the schools within that percentage.
This budget maintains all programs for our students while staying under the tax cap and maximizing state aid. It is a fiscally responsible budget reducing the reliance on fund balance which ensures the future financial stability of the school district.
There is a proposition to fund Capital Project 2024 which will have zero taxpayer impact. The scope of the project is to replace divider doors in many school, exterior doors at most of the school buildings, a slate roof at MES and to refurbish and replace worn tile and equipment in the pool. Find more information on the Capital Project page.
There are two Board of Education seats open to be filled from July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2027.
Fast Facts:
Proposed Budget: $129,300,000
Budget to Budget Increase: 2.74%
Proposed Tax Levy: 2.99%
The VCSD budget history which can be found here.
The Tax Levy stayed under the tax levy limit for 2024-25 at 2.99%. The Tax Levy History can be found here.
The 2024-2025 Budget :
- Maintains all programs while staying well below tax levy limit and maximizes State Aid increase
- Maintains all curricular and extracurricular programs
- Maintains all positions that have been added for social and emotional support needs
- Continues leadership development/consultants
- Strategic Plan
- Data Teams
- Behavior management
- Adds a Girls Wrestling Team
- Fiscally responsible reductions to manage impact
- Reduction of staff through attrition
- Reallocation of staff where applicable for vacancies
- Discontinues District paid field trips
- Maintains the sound financial stability of the District
Sources of Revenue
State Aid: $53,961,431(42%)
Tax Levy: $68,974,000 (53%)
Other: $6,364,569 (5%)
Expenditures
Program Budget: $105,239,266(81%)
The Program Budget includes: The salaries and benefits of all teachers, guidance counselors, aides, monitors, psychologists, nurses, social workers, and speech therapists. Also included are the costs associated with all the instruction and extra-curricular programs.
Capital Budget: $12,904,366(10%)
The Capital Budget includes: Debt service on buildings; bus purchases; tax certiorari and court-ordered costs; and operations and maintenance costs including custodial staff.
Administrative Budget: $11,156,368 (9%)
The Administrative Budget includes: The salaries and benefits of all professional members who spend 50 percent or more of their time in administration and supervision. Also included are clerical staff; public information; curriculum development and supervision; research, planning, and evaluation; legal services; and school board-related costs.
The 2024-2025 Budget aligns with the District Strategic Goals.
- It aligns with the aspiration of Valley Central being rated in the top 5 schools in Orange County at the best value for the community.
- Valley Central provides quality education to the community’s children at the same time its per-pupil spending level is the third lowest in Orange County.
Valley Central School District is a collective investment by the community in its future and a reflection of its values. It is the responsibility of district leaders to work to manage the use of resources to provide the best education possible according to the mandates and requirements of the NYS Department of Education and Board of Regents to the community’s students while at the same time, developing and managing the district budget responsibly with accountability to all community members, including the taxpayers. The Board of Education is charged to adopt a budget in the spring of each school year for the following school year that is presented to the community for a vote, held on the third Tuesday in May.
School budget explanations can be filled with unfamiliar language. Learn more about school budget language here.
School Budget 101 Infographics
Set Goals
The Valley Central School District Board of Education, comprised of elected volunteers from the community, sets goals for education in the district every year. Those goals help the district measure its success in meeting community and state education standards. The school board and superintendent use them to guide the budget process and to help prioritize budget items.
Review Expenses
An important part of planning for the future is reflecting on the past. Early in the budget process, the school board and superintendent review data on current student enrollment, academic performance, and costs to operate the district, including employee salaries and benefits. They also consider trends in the costs of supplies (e.g., fuel, electricity, etc.) and outside services (e.g., BOCES programs). Some items on the cost side are not known until the end of the calendar year and many others are mandated by state law but not funded. Learn more about State mandates here.
Budget to Budget Increase
The School Business Official will compare the budget to budget increase when he explains the budget to the Board of Education. The budget to budget increase shows the spending increase from the current budget to the one proposed for the next year as dictated by the operational costs of the district.
Research Revenue
Building a budget, of course, is not just about expenses. The school board and superintendent also research revenue trends. That means looking at trends in State Aid, researching changes in the local tax base and the challenges facing residents and business owners who provide the funds for the school tax levy.
While the School Business Official can “guesstimate” what the district might receive in State Aid based on enrollment, trends and research, the actual figure is not known until the state budget is adopted on April 1. Currently, State Aid accounts for about 36% of the district’s revenues. See the history of VC’s State Aid here.
Another important factor in determining the revenue sources of the district is to calculate the tax levy limit. The tax levy accounts for about 58% of the district’s revenues. The tax levy limit is a complicated calculation of several different factors including CPI. Learn more about tax levy limit here.
About 9% of district’s revenues come from other sources part of which are PILOTS. A PILOT is an entity or business that has asked for a “Payment in lieu of taxes” instead of paying their full assessed property taxes in exchange for a promise to develop that property to the advantage of either the Town or County granting it. Learn more about the PILOTS that effect Valley Central here.
Proposal
The Superintendent proposes a budget that takes into consideration the obligations of the district to provide a sound education while balancing the needs and concerns of the community. The proposed budget is presented at Board of Education meetings in February and March. A final budget proposal is held to present the budget with any adjustments that were made during the proposal process.
Adoption of A Budget
The Board of Education adopts the budget for presentation to the public for the required budget vote in April. A public budget hearing is held and information about the budget is shared with the public on the website and through a newsletter.
Statewide Budget Vote
State law requires that a public budget vote is held every year on the third Tuesday in May.
The VCSD budget history can be found here.
Property Taxes
New York State Schools are funded by property taxes. Typically, school taxes make up about two-thirds of a property owner’s annual tax bill across the state. Valley Central School District’s taxes are collected through the Town of Montgomery Assessor’s office, which collects the taxes from all the residents of the seven towns that comprise the district. Property tax bills can be looked up here for any property in the district.
Last Year’s Budget Information
Property Tax Exemptions
NYS offers property tax relief through the STAR Program. Valley Central further offers tax exemptions to Senior Citizens and Veterans that qualify.
NYS STAR Program
New York State offers the STAR Program to help relieve the tax burden of property owners. There is a program for homeowners under the age of 65 and an enhanced program for homeowners over the age of 65. The program is controlled by New York State and was changed by New York State in 2019. Learn more about the STAR Program here.
VCSD Tax Exemptions
Valley Central School District offers additional tax exemption programs to senior citizens, veterans, and volunteer firefighter/ambulance workers. Learn more about VCSD tax exemption programs here.