Across the Lower Hudson Valley, 53 school districts are seeking 2026-2027 budget approvals and electing Board of Education members Tuesday, May 19.
School district votes differ from other elections in several key ways. For one thing, voting locations are often within schools and polling hours can be different.
Find out details of your district’s hours, polling stations and what’s on the ballot on your local schools’ website.
And why 53 districts when there are 54 public school districts in Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties? Yonkers is one of New York’s “Big 5” school systems that are fiscally dependent on their municipal governments.
Voters get a say in school budget plan approval
Schools are the only layer of local government in New York to have the public give the thumbs up or down on spending plans.
That means if a district wants to break the state’s tax levy cap, a supermajority of voters, or at least 60%, need to approve the plan at the polls.
While it’s often called a 2% tax cap, the actual percentage increase allowed varies from district to district, based on several factors.
For example, Haldane in Putnam County can increase its tax levy up to 5.53% and be under the state tax cap; that’s what the district is asking voters to approve for the 2026-2027 budget plan.
A few districts in Westchester are seeking a tax cap override.
Byram Hills, for example is seeking a 5.25% tax levy increase for its 2026-2027 proposed budget, which comes in at $107,327,289. Because the district is wrapping up payment on a long-term bond, its state calculated tax cap is actually negative, at -1%.
Eastchester’s $116,858,433 proposed budget for the 2026-2027 school year carries a 6.31% tax levy hike. Superintendent Alison Villanueva said in communications with district residents that the revenue was needed to maintain quality student academic programs.
“Residents know that a high-performing school system is the foundation of a vibrant, sought-after community,” Villanueva wrote in the community newsletter.
School board trustees, propositions too
Voters also choose school board members. Some districts have three-year terms and some four. School boards also vary in size depending on the district; for example, North Rockland has nine members but South Orangetown has five in Rockland County. In some places, the board members run for any open seats, or “at large,” and other districts have specific seats or wards. Usually only a handful of seats are up at the same time.
The school budget vote is usually Proposition 1 on a local ballot. Some school election ballots also include library budgets as a separate proposition, while in some areas, the library vote is a separate election.
A handful of districts are also seeking voter approval for bonds.
New Rochelle is floating a $35 million bond to pay for capital projects districtwide. Scarsdale is asking voters to O.K. a $101.7 million bond for capital improvements at all schools.
Hendrick Hudson school district has included a proposition to spend up to $775,000 to bond for transportation improvements.
Hen Hud, with a tax base socked by the closure of Indian Point nuclear power plants several years ago, is also seeking to pierce the property tax cap. The district’s asking voters to approve, with a supermajority, a 6.49% increase in the levy for a $102,611,139 budget for 2026-2027.
“Navigating this fiscal reality requires difficult decisions,” Superintendent Michael Tromblee wrote in a newsletter to residents — “yet the proposed budget further advances our ability to live out our mission to ensure students are engaged, passionate learners who achieve their maximum potential and contribute to society.”
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: NY school votes Tuesday will decide budget tax levy, pick trustees
Reporting by Nancy Cutler, Rockland/Westchester Journal News / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
