001E2 Gowanda HS Library: I'll actually let you do. My. E2 Gowanda HS Library: yeah, I know, yesterday they had a track meeting. So I was over there. Yeah. The girls had a tracking today. E2 Gowanda HS Library: She graduated 7 years ago. I think I messaged her today to see if she wanted to play. Do you want to open. E2 Gowanda HS Library: If you understand, you do it. E2 Gowanda HS Library: And, Anthony, we're only going to show the screen with the Powerpoint. Do you want to cut away to Wendy. Maybe give you that audience reaction. We don't want to do that. E2 Gowanda HS Library: We're like, that's not great. E2 Gowanda HS Library: It's showing. Live. I didn't see it on Facebook. Oh, you can. Okay, it said, there was a problem.
002So, oh, okay. E2 Gowanda HS Library: think it fooled you. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Okay, we're going to start our Board of Education public budget hearing tonight. We do not have a quorum. So we are just going to open the meeting and go right into our public budget hearing presentation. E2 Gowanda HS Library: So if you want to open us up, go right in. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Well, thank you. Everybody for joining us this evening. Tonight is the 2026 public budget hearing. I'm Bob Anderson, superintendent of schools, and next to me is Barb Smith, my partner and school administrator. Hard to believe. It seems like we're just here doing a public budget hearing. But here we are on May 7, th 2025. E2 Gowanda HS Library: So welcome for those of you who are
003here in the audience, and those joining us from home or viewing this later. This is the We're conducting our public hearing on the proposed 2526 budget which is adopted by the Board of Education on April 9, th 2025 copies of the budget and required attachments are available on district website at the Web address there. wwwcsd.org backslash business office. E2 Gowanda HS Library: And of course, we can take questions at the end of the presentation. And then Barbara and I are available at any time via phone call, text, message. E2 Gowanda HS Library: phone call or email to answer questions that you may have about anything. So, Steve, let me showcase some of the budget highlights for our upcoming school year. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Our overall budget proposed budget is increasing by about 1.3 million
004dollars, or approximately 3.6% over last school year. There's a proposed tax levy increase of 1.2%, E2 Gowanda HS Library: roughly, $64,000, which, to the home assessed at about $100,000. This equals about $11 12 cents additional per year. Although it may be different, you can look at equalization rates. We will later in the presentation that may change. But this is just simple math. E2 Gowanda HS Library: and according to the property tax Report card that we recently submitted, the Consumer price Index was the measure of inflation rose 2.9 5%. So, like most households and families across the country in our area, prices of goods and services are climbing for the school district as well. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Another notable overall budget point is this, the 1st budget we've had 4 years without any Federal covid
005funding E2 Gowanda HS Library: for the overall budget. A couple additions. We in this budget have had a science teacher in high school, specifically biology. When one of our previous biology teachers retired several years ago, we did not replace that position. But at this point there's a need for additional science instruction in high school. This particular position is being funded by retirement, elementary school E2 Gowanda HS Library: and changing the Student Service Coordinator to an assistant principal at the Elementary school. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Oh. E2 Gowanda HS Library: we have expanded summer School at the Elementary School for the summer. We're proposing to bring back 13th period in the middle school for mediation enrichment at the middle school, and are contracting for additional deaf, interpretive services for those students with those needs. E2 Gowanda
006HS Library: This may not come as a surprise to anybody, but our utility rates spiked and are at the highest rate. Since 2,008 general insurance is increasing in the district. Other significant creases in this budget that are beyond our control are health insurance and employee retirement system. E2 Gowanda HS Library: What is unique about this particular budget cycle, at least, in my opinion, is at the State level. Education funding has been pretty consistent. We have some pretty decent ideas of what to expect in the State generally. That's E2 Gowanda HS Library: the funding path. That may be a little bit murky. Not so much this year. But what's concerning us is Federal funding concerns. We have concerns about Federal funding which provides additional supports for students. We have Federal grants, that total about 1.3 million
007dollars and pay for 11 full-time employees that support special education, native American services, math reading, intervention and social emotional supports. E2 Gowanda HS Library: In the general fund we received impact aid and medicaid from the Federal Government, which is budgeted approximately 1.1 million dollars next year E2 Gowanda HS Library: and Federal funding supports 65% of our food service program E2 Gowanda HS Library: approximately $735,000 E2 Gowanda HS Library: coming from the Federal Government. So reductions in funding or changing requirements for the community eligibility program which provides free meals to all students could potentially be devastating to families in the district. Again, these are concerns depending on what day you read in the news, not really sure how these are going to actually impact us. But if there's large reductions in federal funding, it will impact
008State of New York and then by extension programs here in our district. E2 Gowanda HS Library: And so, due to these concerns over these federal programs and dollars, we've built in some ability to absorb Federal funding reductions in this particular budget, and, as usual, we plan for a rainy day scenario which E2 Gowanda HS Library: they come I don't know, but we're always looking ahead several years into the future E2 Gowanda HS Library: revenues. People ask, you know, Where do our where does our money come from? E2 Gowanda HS Library: Which is the next slide E2 Gowanda HS Library: for the 2526 revenue revenue budget, we received approximately 70% of our overall budget from the State of New York, or about 27.4 million dollars. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Prior to this particular school year, the
009percentage of the budget that was funded by this. E2 Gowanda HS Library: the State age average around 64%. E2 Gowanda HS Library: So a little bit more state aid. But again. That's good, but does make us heavily reliant on State aid. So fluctuations in support from the State of New York could have some really be tough for us to absorb sometimes. Hence some of our budgeting strategies moving forward, our local property taxes constitute about 14% E2 Gowanda HS Library: of our revenue, which is about 5.4 million dollars from our community, and then other source of revenue, are native American tuition paid by New York State to the District Federal aid in this form of Medicaid and impact aid Erie County sales tax, and then we'll augment our balance with some reserve and fund balance as
010well. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Next year some revenue changes of note. And it's gonna blow that up, for people are viewing at home. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Oh, right there we go. Oh, I can actually read it from my email. E2 Gowanda HS Library: So real property taxes, the proposed 1.2% increase will generate approximately $64,000 in additional revenue for the district. E2 Gowanda HS Library: we're using approximately $505,000 more into from our reserves to offset the budget, and then the Governor's executive budget increase in state aid is about $593,000. E2 Gowanda HS Library: I don't know yet. State budget. There's agreement on an agreement word on the quote unquote Street is very soon. We'll have a state budget, so those numbers may slightly vary from what I put on the screen, but we use the
011executive budget proposal that was released in January as the baseline for this budget and this revenue change generally. That doesn't change this kind of baseline for State support. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Our fund balance E2 Gowanda HS Library: so kind of mentioned briefly in other slides, but concerns over future years. Funding is really why this district is strategically build up fund balance and reserves over time. We knew that this previous school year 2324 was the last year E2 Gowanda HS Library: full funding foundation aid and Covid funding was ending. E2 Gowanda HS Library: State comptrollers. Limit of 4% suggests a cap about 1.5 million of unassigned fund balance. E2 Gowanda HS Library: If you've read the paper and tuned into the budget presentations and Conversations board table, we have exceeded that. But the Government Finance
012Officers Association suggests, considering a district's reliance on State and Federal aid, and the volatility of those funds. E2 Gowanda HS Library: and at a minimum. They recommend our fund balance should not be less than 2 months of regular operating expenditures, which are approximate about 6.1 million dollars, which is approximately what we have in unassigned fund balance about 5.5 million dollars. So, although we don't actually E2 Gowanda HS Library: knowingly not comply with the Comptroller's office, we understand that have a plan to spend those funds down. We are in line with E2 Gowanda HS Library: Federal Finance Officers Association and looking forward to that that rainy day and have the strategic funds built up for for that time when they come our expenditures. E2 Gowanda HS Library: So E2 Gowanda HS Library: Budget, well, where's the
013money? Go and people ask. It's probably a really good question proposed. Budget by state function. E2 Gowanda HS Library: so essentially, salaries and benefits general support. Take, pick up most of our goodwire. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Yeah. General support by function, a budget function, general support, instruction, employee benefits and in depth and transfer. And then E2 Gowanda HS Library: by state object, you can see. E2 Gowanda HS Library: I can actually read the writing. My writing. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Yeah, I can see that on the screen. So I'm trying to be my print on my presentation handout. And it's not working. Even my readers are E2 Gowanda HS Library: these salaries and benefits generally. 64% of the budget goes to our staff, which is not unusual nor unique. The rest goes to well. Tuition
014paid for special education students, bosis programs, employee benefits and debt transfers. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Next slide is by state object. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Those are object categories set by the councilor's office. E2 Gowanda HS Library: So you can see where our change in the budget instructional salaries are increasing, due to contractual increases. Summer school. As I mentioned earlier presentation, the addition of period 13, middle school. E2 Gowanda HS Library: non instructional salaries, and increasing as well through contractual increases. E2 Gowanda HS Library: supplies, utilities, equipment. Sro, these are increasing, due to the rising cost of utilities insurance. We have lock replacements in there. An interpreter for the deaf E2 Gowanda HS Library: things that we need. Contract. Transportation is also increasing. We're additional regular homeless routes. We send students. We have kind of
015a hybrid fleet. Most of our internal runs are done by our bus fleet. We contract out a lot of runs to take students to a variety of places across the area, including students who are homeless and other public institutions. E2 Gowanda HS Library: and to transfer funds adding additional support for food services and grants as needed. So that's our expenditure changes in a proposed budget. I'd like to turn over my colleague, Barb Smith, who. E2 Gowanda HS Library: whose pet pet love or pet project is discussing equalization rates, assessments. E2 Gowanda HS Library: which is very interesting when you're looking at your tax bill and just I know she'll highlight this. But you're irregardless of a 1.2 potential increase that is actually flat out increased people's E2 Gowanda HS Library: taxes by by that amount
016really depends on your township, the assessment values E2 Gowanda HS Library: utilizationally. So he's going to share that information with you which is actually very interesting. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Thank you, Dr. Anderson. And yes, this is one of my favorite topics. E2 Gowanda HS Library: So, as Dr. Anderson alluded to. Really, when you look at what impacts your actual tax bill that you have to pay, there's really 5 things last being the amount that the school district is raising. So it depends on the total assessed value of your township. Then it depends on the equalization rate which is set by the New York State Department of Taxation. E2 Gowanda HS Library: It is affected by exemption. So if one person gets an exemption, it's really kind of lowering their tax bill, but pushing the
017levy onto someone else. There's also in Catarugus County. I added, this one this year Catarugus County has something that's called omitted taxes that we have to factor into the towns that have omitted taxes within Catarugus County only. So then, that impacts again those townships, and then, as I mentioned last, is affected by the towns or the school districts taxes. E2 Gowanda HS Library: So really, your bill can kind of go up or down. If any of the 1st few things change, regardless of what happens with our levy. We have 6 different townships and 3 counties that we collect taxes from. E2 Gowanda HS Library: and so ultimately I wanted to show, and I have always tried to probably try to make this as simple as possible is to really show the impact of the school
018district's tax levy on your tax bill. I'm going to show that there's really no correlation whatsoever. This is an actual example of a household that was in E2 Gowanda HS Library: a township that had both fluctuating equalization rates and then assessed valuations. So in following what happened at 2223, their school tax bill, they had a 50% equalization, and their assessed value was 50,000, with exemptions of 8,000. E2 Gowanda HS Library: You can kind of see here that while their tax rate per 1,000 was high, their tax bill was only a slightly higher than the following year, when the tax bill goes down and the tax rate per 1,000 goes really far down. So the prior year, their bill itself was 21% lower. E2 Gowanda HS Library: The increase in the tax levy from the school
019district was an increase of 1.8 5%. Again, no correlation whatsoever. E2 Gowanda HS Library: The following year E2 Gowanda HS Library: they got to full valuation. So it's a hundred percent. Then the town redistricted, re-levied some of the assessments. So their tax assessed valuation went to a hundred 1,000, their exemptions went up 4. So their taxable value went to 88,000 E2 Gowanda HS Library: overall. Their tax bill from the prior year went down 12%. E2 Gowanda HS Library: And the increase in the school district staff was 1%. Again, absolutely no correlation. And it's really because of what's happening in these top few things. And then again, in this school year, so 2425, they had minor adjustments within these things that are set by their township. E2 Gowanda HS Library: So their tax bill went up
0206%, mainly because they had their assessed valuation went up. So then their. So even though their taxes went up 6%. The school district increase was only 1%. E2 Gowanda HS Library: So again, it just really proves that, regardless of what's happening in the school tax, levy your bill that, you see, is really affected by all the other things as opposed to what the district is doing. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Do you want to take back over? Sure, thanks, very much. Well done. Thank you. E2 Gowanda HS Library: So our upcoming budget votes and annual meeting coming up the propositions and the annual vote, there's several propositions to be considered by community members on the ballot proposition, one is to approve the 2526 school budget totaling 39 million dollars, 480, E2 Gowanda HS Library: $40,816. E2
021Gowanda HS Library: Trouble with big numbers this evening. Proposition 2. To approve the purchase of 4, 66 pastor school buses, and one passenger bus, and an aggregated estimate. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Estimated maximum cost 777, $695 and some cents, and that cost shall be funded from the vehicle purchase reserve fund of the district without creating the need to borrow and no budgetary impact on the general fund or the tax rate. This money is coming from our vehicle purchase reserve. This is part of our strategic long term plan, and these are diesel buses. Everybody is asking question. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Proposition 3 authorized the District Fund Repair Reserve with 1.2 million dollars from unassigned fund balance in the 2425 school year with no effect on E2 Gowanda HS Library: scoring. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Well,
022no, we already used it for the pool, so I want to replenish it. And hopefully, I was thinking about using some of it for E2 Gowanda HS Library: the parking lots if we need to. Yeah. So E2 Gowanda HS Library: we borrowed. We didn't borrow, but we took from this fund this year to pay for pool repairs which is undergoing now, and I think if everything goes as planned, the pool should be, don't quote me by spring of next next year, 2026, but we're replenishing that outside fund balance for use of our parking lots to some extent. If you've been out there lately, you can tell they need some some work. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Proposition 4 authorizes the annual appropriation for the operation and the library tax levied Free Library to be increased from
023$60,180 to $61,383 and 60 cents. This has no effect on the school tax rate. The district is a pass-through agent, so we would do this for the library. But this has no bearing on this particular school district. E2 Gowanda HS Library: School Board candidates says, vote for any 3, but really should read any 2 for three-year terms, beginning, July 1, st 2025, expiring, June 30, th 2028. Our 3 candidates are John y. Water, Jr. Brandon, Newell and Brittany, Wozowski. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Britney. Oh, but appreciate all the candidates willing to spend the time in public service, and voters may write in the names or names of any candidate who's not listed on the ballot E2 Gowanda HS Library: voter eligibility E2 Gowanda HS Library: the vote in this upcoming election you must be United
024States citizen, 18 or older on voting day, and a resident of the school district for 30 days prior to the vote. E2 Gowanda HS Library: A district may require all persons offering to vote at the Budget vote and election to provide one form of proof of residency pursuant to education law, 2018 c. Such form may include driver's license, non-driver, identification card utility bill or voter registration card on offer proof of residency. The district may also require all persons offering to vote, provide their signature, printed name, and address. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Our annual vote, as mentioned before in person, is on Tuesday, May 20, th 2025, E2 Gowanda HS Library: in the middle school library from 8 am. To 8 Pm. E2 Gowanda HS Library: If you would like to request an absentee ballot. It
025can be obtained by the district clerk E2 Gowanda HS Library: on special regulations, govern absentee ballots, but she's reachable at (716) 532-3325, extension 6, 3, 0 0. For more information. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Application. Deadlines. May 13.th E2 Gowanda HS Library: If the ballot will be mailed to the voter, may 19th ballot will be picked up by the voter and deadline to be received by the district clerk. Votes will be received no later than 5 Pm. Tuesday, may 20th next steps, and some closing remarks E2 Gowanda HS Library: from us, the Budget calendar. Or, excuse me, the budget, newsletter and budget notice will be included in the budget newsletter that will be sent to district residents after tonight's hearing. Starting tomorrow May 13.th So you can expect that in your mailbox. Yeah, it'll be published
026online as well. If you want an earlier sneak peek than waiting for the mail. E2 Gowanda HS Library: May 20th is a statewide budget. Vote school Board election day again. Our polls are open here in the Middle School Library from 8 Am. To 8 Pm. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Optional budget Pool will be there when exiting the polls. If you're interested in providing little information about your thinking about why you voted or didn't vote for a particular proposition. I'd love to hear that. And again, please visit the district website and budget page for additional updates and documents. The website is listed there on the screen. E2 Gowanda HS Library: any comments or questions these can be emailed to Ms. [email protected]. That's Mark Smith, or feel free to reach out to me as well. We're available
027via email or simple phone call, or you can stop by. I always like to see interesting visitors. So we have some people in the audience tonight. We have some board members here and some folks in the audience any questions for those present E2 Gowanda HS Library: by those presents? E2 Gowanda HS Library: No questions. Okay, thank you. E2 Gowanda HS Library: Alright. Cool. E2 Gowanda HS Library: All right. Well, thank you. Everyone. Yeah, thank you. Everybody for spending a little time with us, listening to the presentation. Again, if there are comments or questions, there's certainly a lot to look at and think about. So please email, bar or me, or give us a call or make an appointment to stop by. Glad to chit chat. Thank you, and have a great evening. Everybody.