Cambridge Considers Options for Budget

CAMBRIDGE - In mid-March the Cambridge Central School administrative team announced that they had identified a significant budget shortfall in the current year’s revenues that would likely carry over or worsen in the next school year. In addition, projections for the next school year paint an even more significant lack of funds to cover planned expenses.

For 2024-25, aid to the district from New York State is $150,000 less than expected. Expenditures for health insurance exceeded projections by a whopping $700,000, and additional staff needed to provide needed student services cost $500,000. In total, $1.35 million more than covered by revenues.

These costs will continue in the 2025-26 school year, along with more increases. Health insurance is expected to rise another $650,000. Special education placements outside the district will add $900,000 to the budget, and contractual requirements will add another $425,00.

The Board held a budget workshop on March 27 to discuss the problem and develop a plan. Three scenarios were presented.

Scenario One

In the first scenario, the district worked to preserve all educational opportunities, extracurricular activities, and clubs. To achieve this, the district would:

Leave any retiree positions vacant, Reduce the allocations for supplies, equipment, and contracts; Apply fund balance dollars (leaving less than the recommended 4%); Lay off seven staff members, and; Reduce benefit costs due to the reduction in staff.

These changes would cover $1.5 million of the budget shortfall. To cover the remaining costs, the district would have to override the state tax levy cap and rise by 6.22%.

To override the tax cap, a super majority of voters (60% or more) would have to vote in favor of the budget.

Scenario Two

In the second scenario, the district would eliminate clubs and extracurricular activities, with the exception of sports. To achieve this, the district would:

Take all of the actions listed in Scenario One; Eliminate all clubs and extracurricular activities (except sports); Make addition reductions to allocations for supplies, equipment, and contracts, and; Decrease benefit costs.

These changes would cover $1.8 million of the budget shortfall and a tax levy up to the state cap of 3.18% would be needed. Only a simple majority would be needed to pass the budget (50% plus 1 vote).

Scenario Three

The final option would be a contingency budget. If a contingency budget is in place, the budget cannot exceed the tax levy from the prior year. In Cambridge, the 2024-2025 budget had a tax levy of 1.8%. To achieve this level of expenditures, the district would have to make all of the previously listed cuts, plus cut an additional $135,793. In addition, under a contingency budget, the district is not allowed to spend money in certain areas.

Rules imposed by a contingency budget, include: Community organizations must pay a fee to use the facility; No equipment can be purchased; No buses may be purchased. The district is returning three leased buses this year, so this rule will leave a bus shortage.

April 2 Meeting

The Board held a public meeting on April 2 to consider its options. Roughly thirty residents were in attendance. The board did not take comments from the public, discussing various items in the proposals but no final decisions were made.

On District Mergers

The board discussed the broader impact of budget cuts, noting that the challenges faced by Cambridge are not unique. Similar issues are affecting districts across the state, with Salem and Hoosic Valley particularly struggling. Salem faces a $2 million budget shortfall, while Hoosic Valley is looking at an $800,000 gap. Board members acknowledged that the state is pushing for mergers among districts by offering substantial financial aid over a ten-year period. Governor Hochul’s regionalization initiative is aimed at promoting more sustainable school district structures, but it doesn’t immediately address the current budget crisis.

Board President Shay Price raised important questions about the sustainability of the proposed budget cuts. Price emphasized that the board needs to determine whether the focus should be on surviving the upcoming school year or finding a way to ensure long-term viability. While merging with neighboring districts remains an option that the state is encouraging, Price noted that the process takes a significant amount of time and is simply not feasible for the upcoming school year.

Looking further into the future, Price suggested considering the possibility of redistricting rather than merging entire districts. This idea would involve reconfiguring district boundaries based on equity and the location of bus garages and school buildings as a way to maintain sustainability. However, this concept remains in the early stages of discussion and is not seen as an immediate fix.

Another complication discussed was the decision to merge fall sports with other schools, including Greenwich and Salem. Since the deadline for backing out of these agreements has passed, the board must proceed with these arrangements for the upcoming season.

To address community concerns and maintain transparency, the district will launch a webpage where residents can submit questions and provide feedback. The board will continue to weigh the options presented as they prepare for the next meeting, scheduled for April 10 at 7 p.m. in the Library Media Center.