HODGDON, Maine — Despite a reduction in state funding, SAD 70 has been able to put together an essentially flat budget for the 2015-16 school year.
The SAD 70 board approved Monday evening a $6,502,765 budget for next year. That figure is down $224 from last year’s budget.
Voters will now have a chance to weigh-in on SAD 70’s school budget on Thursday, May 28 at 7 p.m. at Hodgdon High School’s gymnasium. Because SAD 70 uses a “closed” budget format, the only changes that can be made to the spending plan are to lower the amounts. Additions may only be made if they do not increase the bottom line figure.
Although the total budget is down, which is the first time since 2010-11, the impact to taxpayers may be going up due to reductions in state funding and an increase in the “required local” shares.
SAD 70 will receive $3,233,860 from the state for education, which is a decrease of $83,506 (2.5 percent) from last year. The amount the district must raise in order to receive those state funds has also gone up $77,506 (4.3 percent) to $1,868,778.
Because SAD 70’s budget has traditionally been higher than what the state says it should pay for “Essential Programs and Services,” the district will need to raise additional local dollars to balance its budget. This year, that additional local total amounts to $837,627, which is an increase of $3,276 (0.4 percent).
“This is a flat budget,” Superintendent Scott Richardson said. “But there is an increase to the towns of about $83,281, which is about 1.28 percent. We have averaged 1.07 percent over the last eight years in the actual budget. The board over the years has done a pretty good job trying to keep increases to a minimum. We appreciate that towns can only afford so much.”
For the second straight year, the district plans to use a carryover of $350,000 to help reduce the tax impact. The district is also optimistic it will receive $125,000 in revenue (an increase of $25,000) from students who tuition into the district, as well as a jump in Title 1 money from Mainecare ($43,000 which is an increase of $13,000.)
The district will have four teachers retire at the end of the current school year and only has plans to replace two of those teachers, hopefully at probationary-level pay to save even more money.
A number of capital improvement repairs will also be put on hold. A study of the entire district was done by engineers earlier this year. That study revealed $1.6 million in improvements were needed at the high school and an additional $839,000 at Mill Pond School.
The district has opted to do only those repairs that were listed as critical needs for next year, including the installation of higher handrails on stairwells at the high school, at a cost of $30,000; fire alarm system replacements, about $20,000; new safety straps for the basketball backboard at the high school and Mill Pond, $9,600; a rubber membrane for a section of roof at the high school, $2,000; and the creation of an staff bathroom on the second floor at Hodgdon High School, $8,000.
