Fayetteville-Manlius Approves $122.5M School Budget

The Fayetteville-Manlius School District Board of Education adopted a $122.5 million budget for the 2026-27 school year, increasing the tax levy by 3.12% to its calculated limit. Voters will decide the proposal May 19 from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Wellwood Middle School. The board holds a public hearing May 11 at 6 p.m. at Eagle Hill Middle School.

The budget rises 5.22% over the current year, driven largely by $3.5 million in additional debt payments for recent construction, including the $52 million F-M High School project. Seventy-one percent of spending goes to instruction and student support, covering salaries, benefits, transportation, special education and athletics.

Employee health insurance premiums jump 10.5%, adding $1.8 million in costs. The district averaged 6% annual increases over the past decade. Rising gas and electric costs compounded the pressure.

To contain spending without cutting programs, district officials cut building-level budget requests by 2.20%, eliminated an interim assistant principal position and left seven instructional posts unfilled through retirements, saving $650,000.

State aid covers 31.64% of expenses. County sales tax and interest revenue account for 5.12%. The tax levy covers the remaining 63.24%.

For a Town of Manlius property, the estimated increase is $0.58 per $1,000 of assessed value. Actual rates depend on town and village assessments set this summer.

The district will use $3.4 million in fund balance and reserves, about $6,000 less than the current budget. Assistant Superintendent Brad Corbin initially projected needing $4 million but reduced that through cost-saving measures.