OBSERVER Photo by Braden Carmen Matt Miller, Silver Creek School Business Manager, described the district’s 2025-2026 school budget proposal at a recent Hanover Town Board meeting.

SILVER CREEK — The next big vote for the Silver Creek school community is approaching quickly.

On Thursday, the Silver Creek Board of Education will hold a public hearing pertaining to the 2025-2026 school budget. The hearing will precede the regular meeting of the Board of Education, set for 7 p.m.

The official budget vote will be on Tuesday, May 20, from 1-9 p.m. in the High School Lobby. Ruthann Rocque will be the Poll Site Coordinator, while Pauline Flitt, Yvonne McCarthy, and District Clerk Emily Cole will be Election Inspectors.

If approved, the 2025-2026 school budget will be $32,177,552. The estimated total school tax levy is $6,469,605, representing a tax increase of 1.97%. The increase is well below the 2025-2026 tax cap of 4.125%. Instead, the district plans to utilize just over $2.7 million of reserve funds and more than $750,000 of appropriated funds to balance the budget.

Matt Miller, Silver Creek Business Manager, stated that according to the equalization rates the district projected last month, the proposed tax increase of 1.97% would amount to an increase of 39 cents per $1,000 of assessed value for residents of the town of Hanover; 38 cents per $1,000 in the town of Brant; and 47 cents per $1,000 in the town of Sheridan.

Two open seats on the Board of Education will also be listed on the ballot. There will also be a proposition on the ballot to authorize the purchase of school vehicles utilizing funds from the capital reserve for vehicles in the amount of $684,000. Another proposition on the ballot will be to dissolve the Capital Reserve created in 2017 and use the remaining balance to pay for balances owed for bonded indebtedness in the 2025-2026 school year.

Finally, a proposition to allow for the library tax increase of $127,110, as requested by the Anderson-Lee Library, will be listed on the ballot. A similar proposition in the amount of $42,540 will be listed on the Forestville school budget ballot.

Silver Creek has seen a steady decline in enrollment over the past five years. In 2020-2021, the district had 1,116 students enrolled. This year, enrollment is 1,031, a decrease of 85 students since 2020-2021.

In the 2000 census, Chautauqua County had a population of 139,750. That figure decreased to 134,905 in 2010, then down again to 127,657 in 2020. Cattaraugus County followed the same trend, with a population of 83,955 in 2000, down to 80,317 in 2010, and 77,042 in 2020.

The district expects just shy of $20.3 million in aid from New York State. The district will receive $950,000 in Native American Aid and $520,000 of Impact Aid, along with federal grants.

Miller highlighted to the Hanover Town Board at a recent meeting that the district is focused on a culture of safety, academic success, and family/community engagement. The budget was crafted with those goals in mind.

The district surely hopes for a similar result in its as the Capital Project vote this past December, which voters approved. At a recent Town of Hanover Board meeting, Superintendent Dr. Katie Ralston thanked voters for their approval of the project, which was the largest in the district’s history, amounting to $36.1 million of work.

The Capital Project required no tax increase to fund, meaning the 1.97% tax levy increase accounts for the Capital Project cost in its calculation. In all, $5.7 million of the total project cost – 15.8% of the total amount – will be funded by the District’s Capital Reserve. The remaining $30.4 million of the $36.1 million project – 84.2% of the total cost – will be funded by State aid reimbursement.

Miller said the Capital Project is currently in the “development stage”, with plans on track for submission to New York State this fall. The district hopes to begin construction next spring.