Tompkins County residents will vote on their school districts’ budgets on Tuesday. The outcome will decide how much money districts can spend in the upcoming school year.
Voters can accept or reject the budgets proposed by their local school districts. If a district’s spending plan is voted down, the district can either adopt a contingency budget or hold a revote.
A contingency budget means the district can’t purchase anything deemed nonessential or allow outside groups, like after-school programs, to use district facilities without paying. It also means the tax levy, or the amount of funding the district receives from property taxes, won’t increase.
If the district chooses to hold a revote after a budget is voted down, they can resubmit the original budget or bring forward a new proposal. If the proposed budget fails during a revote, the district is forced to default to a contingency budget.
Last year, both the Newfield City School District and Ithaca City School District saw their initial budget proposals rejected by the public. The districts’ initial proposed budgets both exceeded the tax cap, meaning that the proposed tax levy increase required an at least 60% approval rate to pass.
Both Newfield and Ithaca were able to secure pared-down spending plans after a revote.
Here are all of the budgets and spending propositions on the ballot this year in Tompkins County:
Ithaca City School District
The Ithaca City School District’s proposal would increase its budget by around $6 million, or 3.69%.
The plan includes a 3.76% increase in the tax levy. Under the proposed budget, someone with a home valued at $300,000 would pay about $10 more a month in school taxes according to the anticipated tax calculator tool on the district’s website.
A second proposition on the ballot would approve spending from a reserve fund for new, low-emissions buses and renovations at Cayuga Heights Elementary School.
Voters can look up their polling place using their address here.
Newfield Central School District
The Newfield Central School District is asking voters to approve a $1 million increase in the budget, up by 3.71% from the 2024-25 budget.
The proposal comes with a 2.5% increase in the tax levy. Under the plan, a person with a home valued at $100,000 would pay around $1,600 a year in property taxes.
Two additional propositions authorizing the purchase of school buses are also up for a vote. Residents can cast their ballots on Tuesday from noon to 9 p.m.at Newfield Elementary School.
Trumansburg Central School District
Trumansburg Central School District has proposed a budget increase of $990,909, or a little over 3%.
The tax levy is set to increase by around 3.4% under the plan. Homeowners are estimated to owe around $1,500 in school taxes per $100,000 in property value.
Additional propositions on the ballot include the creation of a reserve fund for buses and other equipment and the collection of around $4,500 in additional taxes to support the Ulysses Philomathic Library.
Residents can cast their ballot at the Ulysses Historical Society from noon to 8 p.m..
Dryden City School District
The Dryden City School District is looking to increase its budget by around $1.5 million, or 3.3%.The tax levy would also increase by 3.3 percent under the proposal.
Additional propositions up for a vote include approvals for bus purchases and improvements to Dryden Elementary School.
Voters can cast their ballot at the Dryden High School Auditorium between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m..
Groton Central School District
The Groton Central School District has proposed a 1.6% increase, about $400,000, to the budget.
The plan comes with a 2.49% increase in the amount of money collected from property taxes. Homeowners are estimated to owe around $1,590 in school property taxes per $100,000 in assessed property value.
The budget includes plans to buy a new bus and to resurface the district’s track.
Voters can cast their ballots from noon to 9 p.m. at the Groton Central School District Office.
Lansing Central School District
The Lansing Central School District has proposed a $1.1 million, or 2.86% increase in its budget. That includes a 5.13% increase in the amount of money collected from property taxes.
A taxpayer with a home valued at $100,000 would pay an estimated $70 more in school taxes a year under the proposed plan, according to calculations from the district.
A second proposition would allow the district to borrow money to purchase school buses. The district said it plans to buy two diesel buses and two student passenger vehicles.
The polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Tuesday, May 20 at R. C. Buckley Elementary School.