Credit: ppcsd.org
Fearing the possibility of drastic budget cuts in 2025-2026, school superintendent Brian Timm presented the first in a series of three workshops to the Pine Plains Board of Education on Wednesday, Aug. 21. “This will be a monthly conversation in preparation for budget planning in November,” he said. “This way, we’ll be fully knowledgeable, have time to talk and think about things before we have to make our decisions.”
Timm’s first presentation focused on Foundation Aid, a program that accounts for $6.9 million of the Pine Plains Central School District’s $8.5 million in state funding. Gov. Kathy Hochul’s proposed 2024–25 budget would have slashed the school’s Foundation Aid by $4 million, but an outcry from educators and politicians persuaded Hochul to reinstate the funding, at least for this year.
Hochul has since ordered a comprehensive survey of the Foundation Aid formula, hiring the Rockefeller Institute of Government, a nonpartisan research arm of the State University of New York. That report, expected in December, may go a long way toward determining how much aid the PPCSD will receive in years to come — and Timm wants the school board to be prepared for the worst.
“I am very concerned about what might be on the horizon,” he said. “I feel like the state and the governor have given us a warning shot to start a conversation, and start preparing.”
In his presentation on Wednesday, Timm said that Foundation Aid is determined by a formula so complex “I can’t begin to try to explain it.” But the two factors that have the biggest impact on the dollar amount provided by the state — pupil enrollment and a calculation called the wealth ratio — are not favorable for the PPCSD.
Enrollment has declined from 1,420 students in 2003 to 803 this year. Timm’s projections showed that by 2029, total pupil enrollment will be just under 700.
Wealth ratio is based on property value assessments within the school district; Pine Plains has a high proportion of expensive properties. So even though 40% of PPCSD school children qualify for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), providing food benefits to low-income families, Timm said, “on paper, we look like a rich district…. We appear to be 2.5 times wealthier than you would expect.”.
Credit: Brian Timm
Another issue that could imperil PPCSD funding is the “save harmless” or “hold harmless” clause, which Hochul wanted to eliminate in her 2024–25 budget proposal. It ensures that school districts receive at least the same amount of financial aid as they got the previous year.
In preparing its report, the Rockefeller Institute conducted a series of summer meetings with educators from across the state. “I recently was invited to private sit-down with State Senator Michelle Hinchey and Robert Megna [Rockefeller Insititute president], who’s in charge of the study,” Timm said. “I expressed my concerns as it pertains to PPCSD.”
Hinchey told the Herald that the Foundation Aid formula hasn’t kept pace to reflect the present realities of schools, especially those in the Hudson Valley. “With the Foundation Aid formula now under review, we’re fighting for a better funding plan to provide stability and ensure that the needs of our schools and, most importantly, our students are met,” she said.
Hochul could accept or reject all or part of the recommendations. “We look forward to reviewing the final Rockefeller Institute report and working with the legislature to ensure New York’s students receive a high-quality education,” she said.
Timm hopes that the governor will be open to compromise. “If Foundation Aid disappears in one fell swoop, no way can it be recouped,” he said. “No change in the tax cap could ever recover that amount of money.”
Timm would prefer lesser cuts over a longer period of time — like 10% over 10 years. “A smoother off-ramp would give us time to make decisions so we don’t fall off a cliff,” he said.
The governor’s final determination on Foundation Aid is expected in April, when the 2025–26 executive budget is announced. The school board must finalize the PPCSD budget by early May.
“We need to understand all the moving parts of the school’s finances to be able to make quick, informed decisions,” Timm said. “We’ll be ready.”
Superintendent Timm’s workshop presentation and graphics are available on the PPCSD website. Board of Education meetings are held twice monthly and are open to the public.