RSU 50 budget passed by voters

DYER BROOK, Maine — The proposed $9.2 million 2011-12 school budget for RSU 50 passed its second hurdle Thursday when Southern Aroostook residents approved the spending package with little fanfare.
RSU 50 is a combination of SAD 25 and CSD 9. About 60 residents from the communities of Crystal, Dyer Brook, Hersey, Island Falls, Merrill, Moro, Mt. Chase, Oakfield, Patten, Sherman, Smyrna and Stacyville attended last week’s budget meeting.
    The budget must now go to a referendum vote, to be held Thursday, June 30. A break-down of poll times for each community, with location included in parenthesis, is as follows: Crystal (town office), noon-6 p.m.; Dyer Brook (town office), 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Hersey (Patten fire house), noon-6 p.m.; Island Falls (town office), noon-6 p.m.; Merrill (town office), 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Moro Plantation (Katahdin Lodge), noon-6 p.m.; Mt. Chase (town office), 9 a.m.-4 p.m.; Oakfield (town office), noon-6 p.m.; Patten (Patten fire house), noon-6 p.m.; Sherman (town office), 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Smyrna (town office), 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; and Stacyville (town office), noon-6 p.m.
All 19 warrant articles passed with little opposition and no discussion during the meeting. Only one article — to raise $1,746,918 in additional local funds — had more than one vote in opposition (57 in favor, five opposed).
“I was very impressed with the support of this budget from those in attendance at our meeting here tonight,” said Interim Superintendent John Doe. “I was very surprised there were no questions. I was prepared for quite a few questions, but I guess people understood the budget and showed tremendous support for it.”
During the presentation, residents could ask questions of the budget, but few did. Residents posed only two questions — How many students are in the RSU and how many teachers are there? Doe said there are about 850 students in the consolidated districts, with about 60 teachers and 50 education technicians.
Comparing the 2011-12 school budget to previous budgets is difficult since this is the first year of consolidation for the two districts. Total spending for RSU 50 is up slightly ($32,070) compared to a year ago.
The required local share for the district in order to get full state funding is $2,386,779, an increase of 2.5 percent. However, because the district is spending more than what the state says it should for “Essential Programs and Services,” additional local funds are needed from each of the communities to balance the budget. That additional local figure is $1,746,918 (an increase of nearly $700,000).
To help reduce the tax impact, the district is taking $400,000 from its surplus account, bringing the bottom line local costs to $3,769,767. That figure is an increase of nearly 10.6 percent ($360,693) over a year ago. That increase will be spread throughout the communities, based on valuations. Some communities will actually see a tax decrease, but the majority will see a spike in their tax bills.
The new district saved itself about $146,000 in penalties from the state by consolidating. But that savings was quickly eaten up in the form of lost revenues, reduction in state aid and the elimination of federal stimulus funding.
The RSU board trimmed $200,000 from the budget during its workshop sessions last month. Because the district will soon begin contract negotiations for its teachers and support staff, salary increases are included in the budget. Increased fuel costs also helped push the budget up.
“This is a very tight budget,” Doe said. “There is not a lot of room. We looked at all positions. We have not reduced or cut any positions because parents don’t want classrooms with 28 kids in them.”
If approved at the polls, residents in Patten, Sherman and Stacyville will see the biggest hit to their tax bills.
As presented, the amount to be raised for each community, and the tax impact it will have, is broken down as follows: Crystal, $175,217 (an increase of $8,394, up about .57 mills); Dyer Brook, $185,804 (an increase of $12,101 up about .77 mills); Hersey, $32,449 (a decrease of $53,375, down about 6.63 mills); Island Falls, $849,933 (an increase of $22,694, up about .31 mills); Merrill, $157,514 (an increase of $6,169, up about .46 mills); Moro, $23,713 (a decrease of $10,362, down about 1.01 mills); Mt. Chase, $351,107 (an increase of $56,680, up about 1.67 mills); Oakfield, $504,969 (an increase of $44,627, up about 1.04 mills); Patten, $487,265 (an increase of $104,419, up about 2.53 mills); Sherman, $491,891 (an increase of $94,330, up about 2.26 mills); Smyrna, $223,526 (an increase of $16,000, up about .84 mills); and Stacyville, $286,380 (an increase of $59,016, up about 2.43 mills).
For homes valued at $100,000, the tax hike for Patten would be $253 a year, while Sherman would see a $226 increase and Stacyville a $243 increase. In contrast, Hersey residents would see a $663 decrease in their tax bill for a home valued at $100,000.