Long Beach School Budget Preview, Candidates On The Ballot For 2026-27

Voters will head to the polls to approve or reject the 2026-27 budget for Long Beach public Schools on May 19.

By Tom Gambardella, Patch Staff

May 8, 2026 3:37 pm EDT

(Google Maps)

LONG BEACH, NY — Long Beach voters will have the chance to make their voices heard Tuesday, May 19 when they go to the polls to vote on the school district’s proposed budget and a pair of school board seats that are being run for in unopposed elections.

The school board terms of Dennis Ryan and Nora Bellsey are up, and the duo are running for reelection unopposed for new three-year terms.

As for the budget, it’s a $162 million proposal, which represents a 2.473 percent increase over last year. That increase is below the New York State cap on tax levy increases for Long Beach; the district is allowed to raise its tax levy by as much as 2.65 percent.

The budget includes funding for additional cheer, wrestling and field hockey coaches, as well as an upgraded TV media lab, a Bloomberg terminal-equipped laboratory space, and more. The full budget presentation from the district can be viewed here.

Voting on the budget will take place in three polling locations from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. on election night. The polling locations are as follows:

Lindell School Gymnasium, 601 Lindell Boulevard: “This election district embraces the territory bounded on the West by a line parallel to and sixty (60) feet westerly from Malone Avenue, on the North by Reynolds Channel, on the East by the center line of Long Beach Boulevard and on the South by the Atlantic Ocean,” the district said on its website
East School Gymnasium, 456 Neptune Boulevard: “This election district embraces the territory bounded on the West by the center line of Long Beach Boulevard, on the North by Reynolds Channel, East to the easterly bounding line of the City of Long Beach, and on the South by the Atlantic Ocean,” the district said.
Middle School Auditorium Lobby, 239 Lido Boulevard: “This election district embraces the territory of the area known as Lido Beach, bounded on the West by a line commencing due east of the City of Long Beach, on the North by Reynolds Channel, on the East by the easterly boundary line of Point Lookout and on the South by the Atlantic Ocean,” the district said.