Note to readers: The Livingston Manor School Board meetings have been rescheduled for the fourth Monday of each month, often too late to be published in a timely manner in the print edition of the paper. Manor Ink’s monthly reports will thus appear regularly here online, and in the print paper whenever possible. This report is incomplete and will be updated once additional information on the meeting is forthcoming.

Administration presents 2025-26 RCSD budget

School Board Meeting of May 6

By Marge Feuerstein | Manor Ink Mentor

On Tuesday May 6, the newly formed Rockland Central School Board of Trustees met to present their proposed budget for the 2025-26 school year. The meeting was open to the public and available via Zoom to anyone who cared to join in. Superintendent John Evans and Business Manager Jeff Froehlich presented the figures for the proposed budget and showed a series of charts to illustrate them. 

Passed at the previous board meeting, the proposed budget that will be voted on by the public on Tuesday, May 20, is $32,134,980, which is an increase of $903,510 or a 2.89 percent over the previous year. In answer to a question, Supt. Evans said that would mean a small decline in taxes for Livingston Manor residents and a small increase for those in Roscoe. Also on the budget proposal is the establishment of a $30 million building-and-facilities capital reserve fund spread over 15 years.

Under state law, if the budget is defeated in the public vote, the board has two options. It can hold another vote in June on the same or a revised budget, or it can adopt a contingency budget without a second vote. A contingency budget would contain no tax-levy increase and would eliminate all non-contingent expenses, such as some student supplies, equipment and funds for community use of school facilities.

Voting will take place on May 20 in both the Roscoe and Livingston Manor school buildings.