Special education drives Riverhead school budget increase; audit update shows improved controls: March 17 school board meeting wrap

Riverhead school officials on Tuesday offered a closer look at what is driving the proposed 2026-27 budget, with Interim Assistant Superintendent for Business Marianne Cartisano saying special education costs account for more than half of the spending increase in the district’s $218.88 million plan.

Cartisano’s presentation to the Board of Education, given during the board’s Tuesday night meeting at the middle school, was the second of three budget discussions and focused on the expenditure side of the proposed budget. It is a plan that would increase spending by $7,445,500, or 3.52%, while staying within the district’s 2.91% tax levy cap.

The sharpest takeaway from the presentation was the growing cost of special education. Cartisano said increases in special education services and special education transportation total $4,070,412, accounting for 55% of the overall budget increase.

She said the district is facing increases in mandated services, rising enrollment and more out-of-district placements driven in part by a lack of in-district space. Under Superintendent Bob Hagan, she said, the district is focused on expanding its ability to educate more students on campus, including incoming kindergarten students and, when appropriate, some students now placed at BOCES.

Cartisano also emphasized that salaries are not the main factor straining the budget this year. Total salary growth is projected at just $777,664, or 0.89%, which she attributed to retirements and staffing reductions through attrition tied to a retirement incentive. More detail on the staffing plan is expected April 1.

Benefits remain a major pressure point. The district is projecting a $2,160,460 increase in employee benefits, including a $795,597 increase in Employees’ Retirement System costs and a $1,501,878 increase in health and dental insurance-related costs.

Cartisano also floated a proposal to use $1 million from the district’s repair reserve fund in 2026-27 for building repairs. With ceilings and walls already set to be opened during ongoing energy performance contract work, she said, the district has an opportunity to address additional facility needs at the same time without affecting the tax levy.

The district’s budget hearing is scheduled for May 6 at 7 p.m. at Riverhead Middle School. The annual budget vote and board election will be held May 19 at Riverhead High School.

In other business, the board received an audit committee update indicating continued progress in strengthening the district’s internal controls.

According to the report, internal auditors identified 64 low-risk areas and 28 moderate-risk areas, with no areas rated high risk. District officials said corrective actions are already underway in several areas, including revenue tracking, payroll documentation and procedure reviews. Updated procedures and advisor training have also been implemented for extra-classroom activity funds.

The board approved a resolution authorizing the superintendent of schools and/or the district’s legal counsel to send written notice to the developer of a proposed battery energy storage facility on Pulaski Street that the district intends to require a contract for payments in lieu of taxes. State law exempts energy storage systems from taxation on the value of their constructed improvements. The law gives the taxing jurisdiction the right to opt-out of the exemption for every such development or require the developer to make payments in lieu of taxes.

It also approved a 50% property tax exemption for spouses of police officers killed in the line of duty.

The board authorized the publication of a legal notice for the May 19 budget vote and school board election, approved the second and final readings of several revised policies, approved the appointment of Daniel Nolan as acting assistant principal at Roanoke Avenue Elementary School through June 30, and approved bond counsel and financial advisor agreements related to energy performance contract borrowing.

A student representative urged the district to consider new programs focused on preparing students for life after high school, including workforce readiness, internships, AI literacy, voter registration education and expanded mental health support.

Riverhead Central Faculty Association President Gregory Wallace, told the board that Riverhead’s anti-charter school advocacy has grown into a broader movement, with 23 Long Island districts now backing charter reform efforts and several related bills moving through the State Legislature.

“Make no mistake this is now a statewide movement,” Wallace said. “There are three bills now moving in Albany, including proposals to shift charter approval authority from SUNY to the State Education Department and to require charter schools to meet the same financial transparency standards as public schools,” he said.