Port Jervis School Board Adopts $103.9 Million Budget Proposal

Port Jervis High School in the Town of Deerpark, N.Y., on April 7, 2023. Cara Ding/The Epoch Times

ORANGE COUNTY, N.Y.—The Port Jervis school board on April 24 adopted a $103.9 million budget for the 2025–26 school year, marking the first time the district’s spending plan has surpassed the $100 million mark.

The adopted budget is set for a public hearing on May 6 and a public vote on May 20.

Over the past decade, the budget of the small city school district located by the Delaware River has increased by more than $35 million, from $68.4 million to $103.9 million, according to a presentation at the school board meeting.

However, the school tax levy, the second largest district revenue stream after federal and state aid, has remained largely stable since 2016, with a modest increase of less than $2 million.

For the past five years, the district has managed to keep the tax levy flat at $29 million.

“Five years—we should celebrate that,” John Timm, assistant superintendent for business, said at the board meeting, adding that based on his research, no more than a dozen out of the 700 or so school districts in New York state have pulled off such a record.

Timm went on to caution that he may not be able to propose a flat levy for the sixth time.

“Through the last five years, we had [federal] COVID money, and [the state] was generous with foundation aid. We are now to the point where I’ve sharpened my pencil, and moving forward, we should anticipate some form of tax increase,” he said.

“We are probably not going to put out another zero. We can’t afford to.”

The adopted school budget is up by nearly $7.5 million from the previous school year. The top spending increases are in staff salaries and benefits, at around $2.5 million; special education, at $2 million; and debt payments, at $3 million.

The district expects to spend $11.3 million next year on educating close to 580 special needs students, half of whom have a learning disability.

As for the uptick in debt payments, Timm said it is due to increased district borrowing for school projects, whose costs will eventually be reimbursed by state aid.

On the revenue side, the federal and state aid, the largest income source, is poised to rise to $70 million for the district, with the final number depending on the outcome of state budget negotiations.

According to the latest state education department data, in the 2023–24 school year, the Port Jervis district enrolled 2,300 students. With a corresponding budget of more than $90 million, the cost-per-pupil for that school year stood at $39,382.

John Bell, superintendent of Port Jervis School District, noted at the meeting that, along with the budget, two propositions—one for the phase-five capital project at the middle and high schools and the other for the purchase of the Joyland property—will be on the May 20 ballot.

On May 20, district voters will also elect three full-term school board members and one board member to serve a one-year term.