Tuesday was the big day for school budget votes across the state, and in our region we've been closely following the developments at the Fayetteville-Manlius School District, where a push for more mental health services has been growing.
The district's budget has officially been passed, by more than 1,100, meaning more help for mental health should be on the way.
Inside F-M's $98.9 million budget includes money set aside to increase mental health services by adding two "family-school liaison" positions and an administrative coordinator that will oversee mental health partnerships.
The approved budget will also increase funding for existing programs.
Taking a broader view, many districts across the state were relying on voters to approve a property tax hike above the levy to be able to cover the budget.
Leaders say planning for the budget during a time of the highest inflation in 40 years has added to the burden on how to recover from a pandemic.
"Supply items, gasoline, and diesel fuel, our energy costs, any construction materials have increased dramatically, and it made putting our budget together so difficult. Remember, our board adopts the budget in April, and it's a budget for a school year that technically starts in July, but most of our spending starts in September, so we're budgeting five months in advance," said North Syracuse Central School District Business Services Associate Superintendent Don Keegan.
Depite the burden on tax payers, North Syracuse's budget overwhelmingly passed.
More regional results for last night's school budget votes can be found here: