Residents in the Horseheads Central School District found a revised 2025-26 budget more to their liking than an original spending plan that was defeated last month, approving the pared down budget by a two thirds margin.
A slim majority of voters approved the proposed budget originally presented in May, but because that spending plan included a roughly 3% increase in property taxes, it required a supermajority 60% voter approval to override the state tax levy limit.
Following the defeat, the board of education and school administrators went back to work to find ways to trim the budget back and make it more acceptable to taxpayers.
They reduced overall spending from $105.8 million to $104.8 million, a 2.09% increase over the 2024-25 budget but smaller than the 3.03% increase that was originally proposed.
As a result of the spending cuts, and application of state aid that was approved after the original budget was drawn up, school officials were able to get the proposed tax increase under the state limit.
Based on the preliminary assessment data, the full value tax rate is estimated to increase by 0.31%, or $5 per $100,000 of assessed value, down from the prior estimate of $48 per $1,000.
School officials say the revised budget maintains student programs and extracurricular activities. The final vote Tuesday was 1,240 yes and 631 no.
Voters in the Corning-Painted Post School District, who originally defeated a proposed budget in the May election, also approved a revised $144.2 million budget Tuesday.
Had either budget proposal failed a second time, the school districts would have been forced to adopt state-mandated contingency budgets that would have required deeper spending cuts.
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This article originally appeared on Elmira Star-Gazette: After initial failure, Horseheads voters overwhelmingly approve revised school budget
Reporting by Jeff Murray, Elmira Star-Gazette / Elmira Star-Gazette
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