Fifteen School Districts Pass Budget But Not Highland

Fifteen mid-Hudson Valley school districts passed their proposed 2016-17 school year budgets on May 17. According to a report in the Poughkeepsie Journal, budgets were passed in Arlington, Poughkeepsie, Spackenkill, Millbrook, Beacon, Marlboro, Hyde Park, Rhinebeck, Pawling, Pine Plains, Dover, New Paltz, Red Hook, Webutuck and Wappingers.

The proposed $26.4 million Highlands School District budget did not pass. The 1.98 percent increase over the current tax levy put it in excess of the state property tax cap. That meant it needed to be approved by at least 60 percent of the voters. Votes for the budget only favored it by the 56 percent margin.

While Highland voters did not approve the budget, they did approve a separate proposition to purchase passenger buses and vans.

Several schools not only approved their school budget but also approved additional funds for the purchase of school vehicles. Those school districts include Arlington, Spackenkill, Beacon, Hyde Park, Pine Plains, Red Hook, New Paltz, and Webutuck.

A few schools also allocated money for reserve funds. Marlboro established a capital reserve fund for renovations and reconstruction of facilities, as did Hyde Park and Pine Plains. Wappingers voted capital projects plan, which calls for nearly $27 million in district improvements and upgrades.

The following school board members were elected:

Arlington: Christine Baxter, Kerri Fasulo, Mark Tornatore and Jennifer Eraca.

Poughkeepsie: Randy Johnson

Spackenkill: Herman Lo

Millbrook: Perry Hartswick, Deirdre Houston and Paul Tobin

Beacon: Meredith Heuer, Michael Rutkoske and Antony Tseng

Marlboro: William Bell and Russell Conley

Hyde Park Daniel Duffy, Michael Zagorski and Denise Biery

Rhinebeck: Deirdre D'Albertis, Laura Schulkind and Stephen Jenkins

Pawling: Harvey Matcovsky, Jeffrey Asher and Edward Grippe

Pine Plains: Fred A. Couse Jr., Amie Fredericks, and Anne K. Arent

Dover: Douglas Schroeder and Russell Infantino

Red Hook: Johanna Moore and Maggie Rothwell

New Paltz: Sophia Skiles and Matthew Williams

Webutuck: Chris Mayville and Steve Abad

Highland: Sue Gilmore and Thomas Miller

You can read the Poughkeepsie Journal article here.