BERKELEY – The Central Regional Board of Education approved next year’s budget but is still considering new math curriculum.
The total budget is increasing by $6,126,854, from $53,335,525 to $59,462,379. The local tax levy will increase from $43 million to $46 million.
Each town has a different tax rate based on a few different factors.
A Berkeley resident living in a home assessed at the town average of $211,367 will see an increase of 5.5 cents per $100 of assessed valuation, an increase of approximately $9.69 per month.
An Island Heights resident living in a home assessed at the town average of $424,800 will see a decrease of 1.6 cents per $100 of assessed valuation, a decrease of approximately $5.66 per month.
An Ocean Gate resident living in a home assessed at the town average of $415,805 will see an increase of 2.7 cents per $100 of assessed valuation, an increase of approximately $9.36 per month.
A Seaside Heights resident living in a home assessed at the town average of $598,952 will see an increase of 3.4 cents per $100 of assessed valuation, an increase of approximately $16.97 per month.
A Seaside Park resident living in a home assessed at the town average of $576,115 will see a decrease of 7.1 cents per $100 of assessed valuation, a decrease of approximately $34.09 per month.
School district Business Administrator Kevin O’Shea gave a presentation on the budget, noting that one of the biggest cost increases is health insurance. They looked at other plans but this was the best option given the claims.
All programs will be maintained. Staff will be reduced through attrition, he said.
The solar panels will be replaced because they are at the end of their contract, O’Shea said. The new ones will be installed at a better rate. The district will also get rental income from new carport solar panels that will be built.
Also included in the budget is a new building for the grounds department since the current one is falling apart. The new one will be where the tennis courts are. And then new courts will be built near the cell tower, he said. Other purchases include Chromebooks and Middle School boys lockers.
Revenue to the district includes $1.8 million in Interdistrict Public School Choice money, which is a program where other districts can pay tuition to send kids to Central. There is also tuition from special education programs, O’Shea said. They communicate with other districts to see if Central has the services that students need and if it’s a good fit, the student comes here.
The budget passed, but the vote wasn’t unanimous.
Later in the meeting, the board was asked to vote whether to approve the purchase of a digital math textbook subscription from Savvas Learning Company for $256,457.05. The subscription would last from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2031. The cost for these new texts were part of the budget that was already approved.
A member of the audience asked during the meeting if the cost of the math curriculum is worth it, and if it would result in better test results.
The board chose to table the vote on this, which means that it wasn’t voted on at this meeting.
In other news, Joseph Toth was chosen as the new Middle School principal.
South Seaside Park Leaving
One question everyone has had lately is “What will the de-annexation of South Seaside Park do to Berkeley taxes?” The answer is: too early to know.
A section of Berkeley called South Seaside Park (because it’s south of Seaside Park) recently split from Berkeley and joined Seaside Park. This took well over a decade and it’s still being finalized. Currently, there’s a committee of three people from Berkeley and three from Seaside Park that are working out the last details, such as what Seaside Park owes for such things as property and debt payments.
After the Central Regional board meeting, O’Shea told The Berkeley Times that the information used for the 2026-7 budget comes from a snapshot of property values taken in October of 2025.
Calculations for the taxes come from information such as the value of property and how many students are enrolled from a given town. Children who lived in South Seaside Park will enter next school year as Seaside Park residents, but the tax info hasn’t been updated yet.
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