The annual district budget vote will be held on Tuesday, May, 20 from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.  Voting will take place at both Sand Creek and Lisha Kill Middle Schools. Residents who are unsure on their assigned polling location can look it up here: polling location lookup website

*Please note when entering your birthday you will need to include the following symbol: /

As South Colonie plans for the 2025-26 school year, the district remains committed to academic opportunities for all students while ensuring the structure and sustainability of programming for the future. The focus will be on enhancing facilities and strengthening pathways for students, ensuring that Colonie’s programs, staffing, and infrastructure are built to support the next generation of learners.

According to the second draft presentation, the proposed spending plan totals $139,550,500, reflecting an 8.36% increase ($10.76 million) over the current school year. The plan maintains all existing programs while expanding opportunities that promote equitable academic access and student support services. It also prioritizes the long-term sustainability of district programs and facilities to benefit future generations of Colonie students. 

A significant portion of the budget growth—43%—is driven by increased debt service expenses tied to the district’s ongoing capital improvement projects. However, this is largely offset by a corresponding increase in building aid on the revenue side of the budget.

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Transportation/Facilities 

• Equipment: Budget-neutral.
• Staffing & benefits: Continuation of current staff and contractual salary obligations.
• Supplies & materials: Increase due to inflation and ongoing tariffs.
• Furniture replacement: Continued investment to modernize learning and common areas.
• Capital improvements: Ongoing facility upgrades as part of long-term planning.

Special Education & Student Support Services

• Addition of a 0.5 school psychologist to support ENL (English as a New Language) students (English Language Learners).
• UPK interventionist to provide early academic support.

Districtwide Support

• New districtwide full-time communications support position, created by combining an existing part-time position and BOCES services (budget neutral).

Instructional support and staffing enhancements

• 0.5 FTE business teacher at the high school to expand career pathways.
• 2 additional elementary teachers at Lisha Kill to reduce class sizes.
• 2 middle school interventionists (budget-neutral).
• New grades 7-12 science supervisor to lead curriculum and instructional initiatives.
• Additional coaching and advisor positions to support student extracurricular engagement.

On May 20, South Colonie residents will be asked to vote on the purchase of 10 replacement school buses of various sizes—seven 66-passenger buses, one 42-passenger bus, one 24-passenger bus with wheelchair accessibility and air conditioning, and one 6-passenger minivan or Suburban—at a total cost not to exceed $1,661,000.

Additionally, the district plans to add a 24-passenger electric bus at a cost at time of financing of $164,500 after applying a state grant, but with $0 taxpayer cost after state aid. 

These purchases are part of South Colonie’s long-term fleet replacement plan, aimed at improving safety and reducing maintenance costs. The purchases will be funded through bond anticipation notes, with state aid covering up to 63.5% of the costs for our diesel/gas buses.

Total cost: Not to exceed $1,825,500

New York State requires school districts to begin purchasing zero-emission buses as part of their fleet replacement cycle starting in 2027, with an option for a two-year waiver extending the first purchase to 2029. The final deadline for all school buses to be fully electric is July 1, 2035.

Without grants, electric buses are two to three times more expensive than diesel-powered buses. The district’s eight-year replacement cycle ensures that non-electric buses purchased this year will complete their life cycle before the 2035 deadline. Additionally, the current transportation facility lacks the infrastructure to support electric buses or charging stations.

As part of the district’s Next Generation Capital Project, Phase 3 will include a new transportation department with infrastructure designed to support electric buses. To qualify for the National Grid "Make Ready" grant, which covers charging equipment for the new facility, the district must first purchase an electric bus. That is why the district has opted to include a smaller electric bus in this year’s replacement plan. This bus is compatible with charging stations throughout the district. Full infrastructure for a complete electric fleet will be implemented once the new transportation center is complete.

Under New York state law, if the school budget is defeated, the board of education has two options: put the same or a modified budget up for another vote, or immediately adopt a contingent budget. If residents defeat the proposed budget during a second vote, the board must adopt a contingent budget.

State law mandates that under a contingent budget, a school district must adopt a budget with no tax levy increase and eliminate all non-contingent expenses, such as certain student supplies, certain equipment purchases and community use of school facilities that results in a district expense. (In other words, the district would likely need to charge fees for any community use of buildings and grounds.) The administrative budget would also be subject to certain restrictions.

TBD

The tax levy is the total amount of money a school district raises in taxes each year from all property owners in the district.

The tax rate is the amount paid for each $1,000 of taxable assessed value of property. The rate is used to calculate each individual property tax bill. In districts that cover just one municipality, the tax rate is figured by dividing the tax levy by the total taxable assessed value of the district, then multiplying by 1,000. This gives you the tax rate, which is expressed as the amount per $1,000 of assessed property value.

In districts that encompass more than one municipality, equalization rates are factored in as well to assign a fair share of the tax levy among the municipalities and to the taxpayers within them.

In New York state, each municipality determines its own level of property assessment. This means that property in different municipalities could be assessed less than, higher than or at actual full market value (i.e., the price for which a property could be sold). In order to distribute school district or county taxes evenly among multiple municipalities, the level of assessment for each of those municipalities must be equalized to full market value. To do this, the state uses an equalization rate:
Total assessed value of the municipality ÷ Total market value of the municipality = Equalization rate

Once the full market value of each municipality is established, the school district or county can determine the amount of taxes that should be collected from each municipality.

Click here to find more information about equalization rates and local assessment rolls.

The tax levy limit is the highest allowable tax levy (before exemptions) that a school district can propose as part of its annual budget with the support of a simple majority of voters (50% + 1) required for approval. In other words, if a district proposes a tax levy increase at or below the limit, a simple majority of voters is needed for the budget to pass. Any proposed tax levy amount above this limit would require the support of a 60% supermajority of voters to be approved. The tax levy limit sets a threshold requiring districts to obtain a higher level of community support for a proposed tax levy above a certain amount.

Fund balance is created when there is money left at the end of the fiscal year, either by the district spending less than budgeted or receiving more revenue than anticipated. An “unassigned” fund balance provides monies that can be used for a variety of needs, unlike reserve funds, which are targeted for specific purposes. While recommendations from within the financial industry often suggest that an organization should have an unassigned fund balance of between 5 and 10 percent of their total annual budget, New York state limits school districts’ fund balances to 4 percent.

South Colonie plans to allocate $3,785,000 from its fund balance and $250,000 from its reserves to lower the total tax levy and reduce the tax impact on district residents in the coming year.

New York State’s School Tax Relief Program, or STAR, provides partial school property tax savings to eligible homeowners. Most New Yorkers who own and live in their homes are eligible for STAR savings on their primary residences. Because the STAR program is not a district program, taxpayers STAR savings are not factored into a school budget.

More information about STAR can be found at this website. 

Creating and maintaining a safe and productive learning environment for nearly 4,900 students across eight schools requires a dedicated team of over 900 employees. These individuals teach, transport, coach, and care for students, while also cleaning buildings, preparing meals, maintaining facilities, managing supplies, ensuring compliance with regulations, and making critical decisions to ensure schools operate smoothly and efficiently. With many part-time staff members also contributing, approximately 80% of the district’s budget is allocated to salaries and benefits each year.

Boards of Cooperative Educational Services, or BOCES, provide shared services to school districts as a way to pool resources and share costs. Sharing allows districts to provide programs and services that they might not be able to afford otherwise. A district using BOCES services for the current school year is reimbursed a portion of the cost of the services in the following school year by New York state. The amount returned to each district varies by service and is based on a formula that takes into account the district’s financial resources. The South Colonie Central School District receives 58.4% reimbursement on the aidable BOCES services it uses.

A capital reserve fund allows the district to set aside money for future capital construction projects. Much like a savings account, this money is set aside so that a significant project or expense does not affect the budget all at once. The fund cannot be established without voter approval, and reserve funds cannot be spent without voter approval. Because capital assets have a predetermined useful life expectancy, a capital reserve fund reduces the need to borrow money to replace those assets in the future, lowering debt and interest costs while also enabling the district to still maximize state aid. 

South Colonie obtained voter approval on November 14, 2017 to establish a Capital Reserve Fund to set aside money for future capital improvement projects. The capital reserve fund has a maximum capital reserve amount of $10,000,000 and may be funded over a 10 year period. The Capital Reserve is funded from monies not needed for current purposes and unexpended balances remaining at the end of a fiscal year.

Please contact the district clerk Amber Lanigan by email at lanigana@scolonie.org or by phone at 518-869-3576 ext. 0442.

New York State has introduced early voting for all elections, including the South Colonie annual budget vote and board election. Under this law, eligible voters in the district can request and cast their ballots well in advance of the scheduled vote, offering more flexibility and convenience.

Applications for early mail ballots will be available starting Monday, April 21, 2025, during regular school business hours at the South Colonie Central School District Office, located at 102 Loralee Drive, Colonie. To ensure timely processing, applications for mail ballots must be received by the District Clerk at least seven (7) days before the election (by May 13, 2025) if the ballot is to be mailed to the applicant. If you prefer to pick up your ballot in person, your application must be submitted by May 19, 2025.

All early mail ballots must be received by the District Clerk by 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 20, 2025, to be counted.

No. Absentee ballots will not be mailed to all registered voters. Voters who require an absentee ballot must submit an application unless they are listed as “permanently disabled” on the voter rolls

Qualified voters can request an absentee ballot if they will not be able to vote in person due to illness or physical disability, hospitalization, incarceration (unless incarcerated for a felony), travel outside the voter’s county or city of residence for employment or business reasons, studies, primary caregiver obligations or vacation on the day of election.

Once you receive your ballot, carefully read and follow the directions for filling out the ballot. Then, sign and date the envelope where indicated. If your envelope is unsigned or illegible, your vote can not legally be counted.

Once you receive your ballot, carefully read and follow the directions for filling out the ballot. Then, sign and date the envelope where indicated. If your envelope is unsigned or illegible, your vote can not legally be counted.

If you tear, deface or wrongly mark your ballot, contact the district clerk at 518-869-3576 ext. 0442 immediately for instructions on how to obtain a new ballot.

Ballots may be returned by mail, or returned in person to the District Office. If your ballot does not arrive at the district office by 5 p.m. on the day of the vote, it will not be counted.

The district will collect and hold onto all the ballots until the day of the vote. Ballots will be separated from the envelope that bears your name, return address, or other personally identifiable information before they are counted.

Just as voters are asked to sign a register when they vote in person, voters using absentee ballots are asked to provide a signature. This signature constitutes an affidavit — you are attesting to your identity as a voter who is qualified to cast a ballot in this election. This information is recorded on the district’s voter rolls — a list of names of all the people who cast ballots.

Yes. While your name will be registered on the district’s voter rolls, your ballot will be separated from the envelope that bears your name, return address, or other personally identifiable information before the envelope holding your ballot is opened.

Since ballots are separated from personally identifiable information before they are counted, the public counting process is anonymous. No one viewing the counting of ballots will be able to match a voter’s personally identifiable information with their specific ballot.

The annual school budget vote is an official public meeting of the district, and as such, it is open to the public. South Colonie will begin the counting process on Tuesday, May 20, 2024 at 8 p.m. (immediately after the polls close.) The results will be available as soon as all ballots have been accounted for, but no later than 5 p.m. on May 21 (24 hours following the deadline for ballots to be received by the district). Results are typically shared with the media immediately following the count. They are also published on the district’s website.