NYS School Budget Voters are Most Concerned about Taxes, School Safety, Student Behavior, and Academic Performance
Voters across New York State went to the polls on May 19, 2026 to vote on local school budgets and board of education candidates. Based on the latest ViewPoint panel survey from Research & Marketing Strategies, Inc. (RMS), a majority of those voters had taxes on their minds, but many also felt that school safety, student behavior, and academic performance were urgent issues facing their districts.
RMS conducted the online survey among members of its ViewPoint Panel who reside in New York State, in order to explore their voting intentions and motivations. Data for the survey was collected from May 6 through May 14, 2026 among 627 current New York State residents.
Top Issues
Taxes were the top school-related issue on the minds of respondents as the vote approached, with 61% citing it as an issue they considered urgent in their district and 35% saying it was the single most urgent issue. Other top issues of concern for survey respondents were school safety (50%), student behavior (48%), and academic performance (48%).
That focus on school safety and student behavior is consistent with what RMS has seen in its work with school districts in New York State in conducting School Climate Surveys, with those issues being an increasing concern among parents, staff, and students in the state’s school districts.
The survey findings suggest that voters were more motivated to cast their ballots based on the budgets up for approval rather than the school board races in their districts. Almost 45% of those who voted in past elections said they were more concerned with voting for or against the proposed budget, 13% were concerned with voting for or against a particular school board candidate, and the remaining 42% said their voting focus depends on the year.
Awareness
The survey findings revealed that awareness of the school budget vote in the weeks leading up to it was high among respondents, with nearly 74% of them saying that they were at least somewhat aware of the vote before being notified for the survey.
Voting Intentions
Intentions to vote were also high, with only 14% of respondents reporting that they did not plan to vote on May 19. More than six in 10 people (61%) said they would be voting, and another 25% were unsure if they would vote.
The survey respondents who intended to go to the polls noted they were largely undecided at the time of the survey on how they would be voting on their district’s budget, with 42% having yet to make up their mind at that point if they would be voting Yes or No.
Regardless of how or if they planned to vote, almost two-thirds of the respondents (63%) expected the budget in their district to pass. A similar number (62%) agreed with the statement, “My local school district has earned the support of the community.” In the latter case, the sentiment in support of the districts might be characterized as “soft,” given the fact that only 16% strongly agreed with the statement.
Respondent Profile
The survey respondents were overwhelmingly long-term New York State residents, with 96% reporting that they had lived in the state for 10 years or more. They also reported high levels of engagement with school budget and board of education votes, with 80% indicating they voted in such elections at least occasionally and about one-third (32%) saying they “always” vote in these elections.
Those with children or grandchildren in their current district were the minority among respondents, at 25% and 16%, respectively. Respondents with a child in the district were more likely than those without a child in the district to say they would be voting to approve the budget (42% vs. 29%) and less likely to cite taxes as the most urgent concern in the district (27% vs. 38%). This trend did not hold true among those with grandchildren in the district; with that segment actually being less likely to say they would be voting to approve the budget (25% vs. 33%).
Conclusions
The widespread expectation of budgets passing in their district and the primary concern with taxes are not particularly surprising findings. The concerns on safety, student behavior, and academic performance suggest a focus on what is happening inside the state’s school buildings in addition to what it takes to pay for them. As New York’s board of education members and school administrators make plans for their districts, they should be aware of these concerns among voters.
School district leaders interested in learning more about how RMS can put its expertise and resources to work for them in School Climate Surveys should contact Mark Dengler, President of Research & Marketing Strategies, at [email protected].
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About the Author – Vance Marriner
Vance brings over two decades of experience in market research and analytics across a wide range of industries including higher education, technology and media. He has taught as a part-time instructor of advertising at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, as well as being an adjunct instructor at Oswego since 2013, teaching Marketing Principles, Consumer Behavior, and Seminar in Marketing Management.
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About RMS
Research & Marketing Strategies, Inc. (RMS) is a full-service market research firm in Central New York. Formed in 2002, RMS helps organizations that are looking to know more about their customers and/or potential customers. We conduct surveys, focus groups, mystery shopping, studies, and analyses. Each project is customized and gets personal attention so that actionable, data-driven findings are delivered. RMS has a reputation for getting results. We offer an independent, professional means to conduct telephone, on-line, and mail surveying, as well as in-depth interviews, intercept interviews, and participant recruitment. We also host discussion groups through QualiSight, our onsite call center and focus group facility. We have a proven reputation for successfully recruiting and moderating focus groups, community forums, and town meetings.
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