PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — SAD 1’s 2020-2021 budget passed a budget validation vote in Presque Isle, Mapleton, Castle Hill, Chapman and Westfield on Tuesday, with approval from 73 percent of voters in the district.
Four of SAD 1’s five communities approved the measure with big margins: Castle Hill (80 percent), Chapman (75 percent), Presque Isle (74 percent) and Mapleton (72 percent).
In SAD 1, 1789 residents voted in the referendum, 1,371 more than last year. The increased turnout is likely because of crucial elections and referendums on the ballot, including U.S. House and Senate primaries. Overall, the 2020 budget had 4 percent higher support than the 2019 vote.
Support was less strong in Westfield, where 57 percent of voters — 44 residents — voted to approve the budget, while 33 rejected it.
About 70 residents had passed SAD1’s $26.3 million budget unanimously in the school’s budget meeting on Wednesday, June 16. However, the budget does not become valid until a majority of SAD 1 residents approve it in a referendum.
The 2020-2021 budget was $783,000 more than last year, which SAD 1 Superintendent Ben Greenlaw said would be primarily paid for by a $751,000 increase in state EPS funding.
While the mill rate was not changed for any of SAD 1’s communities, changes in property valuations caused every community except Presque Isle to see property tax increases, including Mapleton by $22,400, Chapman by $8,200, Castle Hill by $7,100 and Westfield by $6,700.
It is unknown whether that increase could be a reason for Westfield’s decreased support, though per capita the town of 626 will pay less new taxes ($10.74 per person) than every municipality except Mapleton.
It’s not the first time a SAD 1 community has come close to rejecting the budget. Last year, Castle Hill residents voted 17 to 15 to approve the budget, while Westfield voted 8 to 6.
