CRCS Holds Annual Budget Hearing

By Joshua Walther

COBLESKILL - On Monday evening, the CRCS Board of Education held their annual budget hearing before the public vote later this month.

Everyone interested was welcome to attend, and unlike the budget development workshops, the Board held a slideshow specifically curated for the public’s knowledge.

“This is a presentation to the public, as opposed to the rest of the development process for the Board,” Superintendent Matthew Sickles said.

After listing the core mission of their district, Superintendent Sickles dropped straight into the numbers for the 2025-2026 budget. The general fund total is $48,417,171, a 2.86% increase from last year, while the total state aid received is $22,295,932 for a 2.62% increase.

The tax levy comes in at $17,886,709 for a 2.55% increase while staying within the limit, and the tax impact on an average $100,000 household is an extra $27.63.

This is the same proposed budget that was adopted by the Board on April 7th, meaning that the district still plans to remove the art teacher position and the librarian position while adding a registered nurse and a psychologist for students.

Superintendent Sickles also noted that there has been misinformation about a $225,000 increase, as their UPK Special Aid Fund allocation saw a noticeable uptick.

“This is a grant with a lot of restrictions,” he explained. “It is UPK funds that would have to be applied to the UPK program, not just aid sitting for the fund balance.”

He also said that while they had three functioning UPK classrooms already, there is no reason to open a fourth, as there are no students on the waitlist and opening another room without a guarantee of filling it would cause their budget gap to widen even further.

“The grant money on its own isn’t enough,” Superintendent Sickles concluded. “It’s partially funded and the difference comes from the district’s fund balance.”

To wrap up their presentation, the Board also explained what would happen in the event that the budget is shot down by the public due to the unpopular reductions.

Superintendent Sickles said that holding another election alone would cost the district another $15,000 to $20,000, and the contingency budget would have to reduce expenses by approximately $950,000 while adhering to special rules.

These regulations imposed on the back-up plan include the inability to purchase new supplies or equipment, no public use of school grounds unless there’s no cost to the district, and no salary increases for non-unionized staff.

Once all the information was made available, the Board confirmed that the public vote will take place at the high school on May 20th from 9 AM to 9 PM and urged district residents to come out.