Thursday, October 1, 2026
According to reports, Freeport Public Schools was one of a dozen Long Island school districts that had a higher cash reserve percentage than New York state’s four percent imposed limit during the 2025-26 school year. While the amount of Long Island school districts that have exceeded this cap have decreased over the years, no clear penalty exists for a district not abiding by the cap.
The Freeport school district allegedly held nearly $25 million in unrestricted reserves during the 2025-26 school year, totaling 9.96 percent of its $250.94 million budget. That budget did not come with a tax levy increase for Freeport tax payers. In the district’s budget proposal for that year, only $5.3 million was allocated for the use of reserves.
In the 2026-27 budget proposal, which the overwhelming majority of Freeport voters approved in May, featured an increase of over $400,000 in the use of reserves, with an overall budget increase of nearly $10 million. No tax levy increase occurred again.
In a report compiled by Newsday, the district’s percentage of held reserves decreased from about 13 percent in the 2024-25 school year. It is yet to be seen if the district will be able to continue decreasing that percentage in this coming school year’s budget.
Michael Pomerico, Freeport Public Schools’ school board president, made financial transparency and adequate stewardship of district resources a continual promise of his campaign to be a school board trustee, and has continued that messaging since being elected.
Pomerico, who was elected to the school board in May, and was elected to serve as board president in July, has led a few decisions so far that have sought to provide such financial balance and transparency, most notably the reinstatement of Superintendent Fia Davis to the district after she was placed on paid reassignment for over a year prior to his election. The district had been paying Davis and interim replacements simultaneously, costing the district hundreds of thousands of dollars more than would be typical.
In regards to the district’s unrestricted and reserve funds, Pomerico, in a statement provided to the Herald, said he and the board would be looking into reviewing the matter appropriately. He specifically stated that it was a priority of the “new board” to conduct a comprehensive review of the district’s budget, alluding to Board Vice President Gabriela Castillo and Trustee Edward Gordon who Pomerico campaigned with and were elected alongside him earlier this year.
“We recognize that the district’s unrestricted fund balance currently exceeds the state’s recommended four percent limit,” he wrote. “Like many boards of education across Long Island and New York State, we have concerns about the fairness of this arbitrary cap, particularly when the state itself and most other municipal entities are not subject to this same restriction.”
Current recommended reserve limitations are designed to prevent the over taxation of residents within school districts. New York State Governor Kathy Hochul has previously suggested that districts with excessive reserves should face penalties.
“As we begin developing the 2027-2028 budget, the Board will carefully examine this issue, along with the district’s overall financial planning practices, to ensure they best serve our students, taxpayers and the long-term fiscal health of the district,” Pomerico concluded in his statement.
