School board approves release of $173,000 to reduce taxes

FARMINGTON – The local assessment for the Mt. Blue Regional School District’s current budget will be $173,000 less than anticipated, following the school board’s decision to return the majority of additional state funding to the towns.

On June 6, voters at the district budget meeting approved a $29.75 million budget for the 2013-14 fiscal year, including funds to cover the proposed shift in staff retirement costs from the state to the local districts. The meeting also included a vote on a final article, which gave the board permission to reduce the local appropriation if additional money was made available by the state, something then-Superintendent Michael Cormier thought was possible.

Following the passage of the state budget last month, the district learned that it would receive an additional $307,949 in state subsidy funding. Of that, roughly $135,000 was to cover the local impact of the staff retirement cost shift, while additional funds were intended to cover the $135,000 curtailment that hit the district in the previous fiscal year.

The board’s deliberations Tuesday revolved around how much money to return to the towns and how much to retain for the district’s depleted emergency funds; according to new Superintendent Tom Ward, the district anticipates having approximately $200,000 in carry-over once all 2012-13 bills have been paid. Historically, the board has maintained a carry-over of $450,000 to $500,000. By law, it can maintain a carry-over equal to 3 percent of the total budget, roughly $900,000.

The carry-over covers the district in the advent of emergency expenditures, such additional personnel if demographics should change dramatically, and is also used during the budget process to reduce the impact of the budget on local assessments. One possible area of concern is the district’s federal Title 1, 2 and 6 money, as the sequestration continues to impact the district. Another is the possibility of a new curtailment in the current fiscal year.

Some directors recommended giving the entire $307,000 back to residents, while others argued for returning the $135,000 to cover the retirement cost shift and keeping the rest in the district’s accounts.

“I personally think it should go straight back to the communities,” new Director Eric Gilbert of Farmington said. He suggested that residents would understand if the district had to return for more money in the advent of an emergency.

Other directors pointed to the low carry-over as a risk to the district. The last thing a school district wanted to do, Ward noted, was return to the towns and request more funds before the year was out.

“I do think the carry-over is not fiscally responsible,” Director Jennifer Zweig Hebert said.

Director Claire Andrews of Farmington made a motion, seconded by Director Helen Wilkey of Vienna, to return $135,000 to the towns and keep the remaining $173,000 in the district. Director Keith Swett of Wilton then moved to amend the motion, seconded by Gilbert, to effectively flip those numbers: keeping $135,000 to cover the curtailment losses and reducing the local assessment upon the towns by $173,000.

After some discussion, the board voted in favor of amending the motion, with Director Robert Flick of Farmington and Director William Reid of New Sharon in opposition. The vote on the amended motion was unanimous.

As the town assessments had not been sent out yet, Financial Manager Kris Pottle said, the $173,000 would simply be subtracted out of the assessments.