The Winslow Township Board of Education has approved a tentative 2026-’27 budget that will see a $3.4 million increase in state aid.
A public hearing and final adoption of the financial plan has been scheduled for 7 p.m. on Wednesday, April 29.
School business administrator Tyra McCoy-Boyle presented numbers in the proposed $135.5 million budget at a meeting on March 25. The 2026-’27 tax levy is $62.29 million, the amount homeowners would pay in school property taxes. An allotted 2% cap, a $4.2-million health benefits waiver and another $1.13 million in banked cap is included in the levy.
The amount an individual pays in property taxes is determined by the assessed value of individual’s home and/or property, and the tax rate that is set by each taxing entity.
Proposed appropriations for the budget include: $44.5 million for instruction; $17.2 million for tuition; $11.3 million for operations and maintenance; $14.6 million in student support services; $8.4 million for administration and information technology (IT); $12.9 million for transportation; $23.9 million for benefits; approximately $1 million for capital outlay; and $638,921 for transfer to charter schools.
Other proposed revenue includes a total of $60.2 million in state aid; $5.5 million from the fund balance; $980,000 in miscellaneous funds; and $26,277 in federal aid. General fund appropriations include a $817,000 withdrawal from the maintenance reserve account.
McCoy-Boyle noted that health benefit costs have “skyrocketed,” from $4.4 million in the 2025-’26 budget of $19.4 million to $23.9 million. Funds for administration and IT decreased from $11.3 million to $8.4 million.
Last school year, the district used a portion of its capital reserve for the heating, ventilation and air conditioning unit at Winslow Township Middle School. And some $1.1 million in maintenance had to be withdrawn in efforts to restore the middle school after a pipe burst there last September. Not all funds were covered through insurance, McCoy-Boyle noted.
The district had to replace 500 feet of pipe, almost the distance of two football fields. Both gym floors needed to be replaced and library repairs included new floors; walls; paint; and new furniture, Interim Superintendent Mark Pease shared in a recent “Winslow Ready” podcast.
Students returned to the middle school in January.
