Show Me the Money: ERSD Uncovers Possible Multimillion Dollar Surplus

Residents shocked, frustrated, and relieved  that struggling district may have nearly 90 million dollars in unspent funds

East Ramapo’s school board will be launching an independent  forensic audit of the district’s finances after the recent and shocking discovery of a massive budget surplus.On Tuesday, March 4th, the school board, which administers a district that was for years believed to be desperately strapped for funds, voted in favor of the audit which seeks to answer how the East Ramapo School District (ERSD), which has weathered over a decade of severe budget restrictions and crumbling infrastructure, could be so thoroughly in the black. The news comes in the wake of reports earlier this year from both the New York State Education Department and the district’s state appointed fiscal monitor that East Ramapo’s budget was operating at a $30 million surplus. As of the March 4th meeting, the board is now estimating that the surplus could actually be as much as $90 million dollars, speculating that the district had been operating with a surplus of 30 million for the past three years.Though the district is just now beginning the auditing process, ERSD’s Assistant Superintendent of Business Eric Stark has theorized that unspent federal and state aid, alongside accounting errors such as budgeting for teacher positions that were never actually filled, could explain the windfall. Stark explained that errors in previous budgets have compounded into present day issues as the operating budget for 2025-2026 was based on inaccurate information present in earlier budgets.  During Tuesday’s meeting, acting School Superintendent Anthony DiCarlo  told a crowd of frustrated students  and parents that none of the people charged with making the past budgets, including a state-appointed fiscal monitor, still worked in East Ramapo Schools.DiCarlo stated that the majority of the surplus likely comes from unspent state and federal assistance which was small comfort to a constituency that had been ordered to pay an increased tax levy in 2024. As regular readers will recall, New York State Education Commissioner Betty Rosa ordered the district to increase it’s tax levy by 4.3% after East Ramapo residents passed a budget that increased the ERSD’s budget by only 1% in June of 2024. Rosa was criticized by residents and representatives  of East Ramapo at the time for overturning a budget approved by the voters and allegedly threatening to fire Trustees who did not approve a new plan for funding that increased the tax levy. Rosa’s earlier decision was no doubt driven by the poor conditions in ESRD schools. East Ramapo schools made national headlines in 2023 after reports surfaced that the facility’s water fountains had been unusable for years, and at Tuesday’s meeting students complained of classrooms that lacked any climate control.Those issues seemed to be compounded by East Ramapo‘s struggle to pass a school budget that significantly increased funding for the district: the discovery of a budget surplus, which was first announced in January of this year, has sparked confusion from both students suffering from poor learning conditions and taxpayers pressured to increase funding for the ERSD.  In addition to the audit ordered on Tuesday, New York State’s Comptroller will also conduct a review of the district’s finances. If confirmed, this newly discovered  money could be a game changer for one of the county’s most troubled school districts.