The Cornwall Central School District Board of Education voted to deny a request from the Village of Cornwall-on-Hudson to exempt village-owned property used for water supply from school district taxes.

Board member Jim moved the motion to deny the exemption; Richard seconded. After a voice vote the chair announced there were no oppositions and declared the motion passed.

Why it mattered: Jim argued the exemption would not produce tax relief for village residents and would shift costs onto other taxpayers. "There is no relief," he said, adding that last year "the cost of providing water for the district increased by over 90%" and estimating that granting the exemption would cost the district an additional "roughly $120,000." He framed that amount as having tangible educational trade-offs, saying it equates to the funding for roughly "60 UPK seats" or nearly "two full teacher positions."

During discussion Jim also challenged the village’s premise that the district should pay a higher per-gallon rate because it is a large user. He said, "If this is simply about the cost structure, we should probably be getting a bulk discount because the more water we use lowers the fixed cost of the water system," and argued charging the district more would be contrary to how water-system costs are distributed.

Board process and outcome: The board considered the village request as a non-consent agenda item. The motion to deny was moved and seconded; a voice vote resulted in the chair announcing the motion passed. No formal roll-call tally was recorded in the transcript.

What was not resolved: The village’s rationale for the exemption request was discussed and disputed by trustees in the meeting record, but the transcript contains no recorded response from village officials during this session. Several technical claims about water-rate structure and the precise dollar impacts were presented as trustee estimates rather than as documented cost reports in the record.

Next steps: The board’s denial resolves the district-level request recorded in this meeting. The transcript does not record additional directions to staff or a subsequent procedural deadline tied to this decision.

Speakers quoted and referenced in this article are those recorded in the meeting transcript: Jim (board member) and the Board president (unnamed in the transcript).