Webster schools budget vote May 19: what's on the ballot, what it costs

On Tuesday, May 19, Webster Central School District residents will vote on a $227.1 million budget for the 2026-27 school year, a 3.10% increase over the current year.

We've been covering this vote since May 4 — if you want the full breakdown of per-town tax rates and what a failed budget would mean for staffing, start with last week's piece on homeowner costs and the contingency or the May 4 overview of the full ballot. This post pulls everything together in one place with voting logistics before the polls open.

The district has put the choice in unusually direct terms. If the budget passes, staffing reductions happen "through attrition only (no layoffs)," in the district's own words. If it fails twice, the fallback contingency budget would mean "likely staff layoffs."

That contrast, in the district's own language, is the single sharpest thing to know before May 19.

What you're voting on

Four items will appear on the ballot.

• The 2026-27 operating budget. $227.1 million in spending, supported by a local tax levy of about $131.9 million. The levy is up $4.3 million (3.39%) from the current year. Because the levy stays within the state's tax cap, only a simple majority is required to pass. The district reports this is the 15th consecutive year it has filed a tax-cap-compliant budget.
• Proposition 1. Authorization to spend $1.8 million on ten new 66-passenger diesel school buses. State transportation aid is expected to reimburse about 68% of the cost. First local payments would fall in the 2027-28 budget year.
• Proposition 2. Reauthorization of the district's capital reserve, with a new $45 million ceiling over 10 years. More on this below.
• Two Board of Education seats. Three-year terms, with two candidates on the ballot for the two seats.

What it would cost a homeowner

Final tax rates are not set until August, and they vary by town because each town has a different equalization rate. Based on the rates the district published in its spring newsletter, the projected rate in the Town of Webster is $29.36 per $1,000 of assessed value, up 66 cents (2.31%) from $28.70. (For a deeper look at what these rates mean in dollars and how the contingency scenario changes that picture, see our May 13 breakdown.)

Applied to typical homes in Webster town, before any STAR exemption:

• $200,000 assessed home: roughly $5,873 in school taxes, about $132 more than this year.
• $250,000 assessed home: roughly $7,341, about $166 more.
• $300,000 assessed home: roughly $8,809, about $199 more.

Residents in the other towns the district covers see different rates: $18.57 in Penfield (up 20 cents), $17.66 in Ontario (down $1.72), and $18.16 in Walworth (down $1.77). The declines in Ontario and Walworth reflect equalization-rate adjustments, not a tax cut on an unchanged home.

Equalization is the state's adjustment for the fact that towns assess property at different fractions of market value. When one town's assessments rise faster than another's, the state lowers that town's rate per $1,000 so the school tax burden stays proportional to actual home value across the district. A homeowner whose own assessment rose could still owe more in dollars, even if the rate per $1,000 fell.

One number cuts the other way for everyone. The district's "true value" tax rate, which strips out equalization differences, is projected at $12.63 per $1,000, down from $13.78. That means the taxable property base grew faster than the levy did.

What happens if the budget fails

A "no" majority on May 19 does not automatically trigger cuts. The Board of Education can put the same or a revised budget back to voters on June 16, the statewide revote date. If a second vote also fails, state law requires the district to adopt a contingency budget.

The district has already calculated that contingency: $225.0 million in spending, about $2.1 million less than the proposed plan, with the local tax levy frozen at this year's $127.5 million.

According to the spring budget newsletter, a contingency budget would mean:

• a loss of free facility use for community groups,
• a freeze on equipment purchases except for health and safety items,
• "likely staff layoffs,"
• and program reviews.

That last line is the cleanest version of the trade-off. The proposed budget hits its staffing target "through attrition only (no layoffs)." The contingency budget, the district says, would not.

Proposition 2: a ceiling, not a check

Proposition 2 is the line item most likely to be misread.

The headline number is $45 million, but voters are not being asked to spend $45 million. They are being asked to authorize a savings ceiling: the maximum amount the district could set aside over the next 10 years for future capital projects (a new roof, a boiler, classroom upgrades, that sort of thing).

Two things follow from that. First, money put into the reserve would come from future annual budgets, not from a one-time $45 million bill on May 19. Second, any actual spending out of the reserve would require a separate voter approval down the road. Approving Proposition 2 fills the savings jar, it does not break it open.

The district says it needs the reauthorization because the existing capital reserve has hit both its dollar ceiling and its 10-year term. Building projects funded from reserves still qualify for state building aid (roughly 70% per project), which avoids borrowing costs.

According to a slide in the district's May 5 budget hearing presentation, Webster currently ranks 15th of 17 Monroe County districts in total fund balance as a share of operating expenses. The new ceiling would move the district closer to the county average of about 16%.

The Board of Education race

Two seats are open, both for three-year terms, and both are uncontested. On the ballot:

• John Barker, a professor in the University of Rochester's Frederick Douglass Department of Black Studies, a former dean at Tufts, and a former Assistant Vice Provost at the University of Miami. He has two children in WCSD.
• Janice Richardson, the incumbent board president, on the board since 2020. She is a reading specialist in the Greece Central School District and was named that district's Golden Apple Teacher of the Year in 2014. She has three children currently in WCSD.

Write-in votes are permitted.

How to vote

• When. Tuesday, May 19, 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.
• Where. Webster Schroeder High School gymnasium, 875 Ridge Road. This is the only polling place for the district.
• Who can vote. District residents who are US citizens, at least 18 years old, and have lived in the district for at least 30 days. Voter registration is not required, but the district requires proof of residency at the polls. Accepted forms include a valid driver's license, a non-driver ID card, a utility bill, or a voter registration card.
• Absentee and early ballots. Applications go to District Clerk Heather Murphy, 119 South Avenue, Webster. Mailed applications must be received at least seven business days before the vote. In-person pickup is accepted through the day before the vote. Contact: (585) 216-0001 or heather_murphy@webstercsd.org.

The district has posted its full budget materials, including the May 5 public hearing presentation, at websterschools.org/budget.

AI tools were used in drafting and research.