Chairman Heather Sinclair called the draft Edgecomb School Committee budget “the best worst option.” The committee held a budget workshop Feb. 12 in hopes of finalizing a recommended school budget for Fiscal Year 25 and to explain their fiscal challenges to municipal officials and residents. The budget draft remains at $3,810,352 which represents an 11.5% spending increase and an 23.6% increased assessment to local taxpayers. 

Sinclair explained factors that contributed to the large assessment increase. State subsidy dropped by 11.8% from $482,565 to $425,489. In recent years, the committee used funds from the unassigned fund balance, also known as surplus. In FY 24, the committee used $150,000 and, for FY 23, used $488,507, but none this year. “We’ve tapped out of the unassigned fund balance,” Sinclair said. “In the past four years, we’ve taken $800,000. There is no more to take.” The committee is also proposing a new literacy program because the current one is no longer available. The committee strongly considered proposing a literacy interventionist, but the estimated $74,000 cost was too expensive for this budget. 

During the workshop, Edgecomb school officials reviewed proposed spending for the 11 school cost centers. The largest one, regular instruction, is up 7%, to $2,181,157. Special education spending would increase 28.7% to $731,020. Program spending depends largely on the number of participating special education students. Other instruction remains the same at $2,800 for the sixth grade trip to Chewonki Foundation. Student and staff support would rise 27.7% to $131,460. This cost center represents essential parts of the educational process not classified as teachers. This cost center represents guidance, school nurse, librarian, supplies and technology expenses. “This is an increase of about $28,000 which mostly covers increased pay and benefits,” Superintendent Robert Kahler said.  

Systems administration represents all costs of operating the Alternative Organizational Structure (AOS) 98 central office. The proposed budget is $152,645, a 17.2% increase. School administration is up 4.7% or about $9,000 which mostly covers elementary school administrative costs. The transportation and buses cost center is up 21% to $100,317. The facilities and maintenance cost center has a proposed 4.1% increase to $276,924. There was nothing budgeted for debt service. The all other expenditures cost center remains at $25,000.

During the budget workshop, The Boothbay Register asked Sinclair if she expected the committee to propose a lower local assessment in the final draft. “I’m not sure what we are going to do. I think we will take a deeper dive into the topic during the meeting. That will be a better time to ask,” she said.

The school committee meeting followed at 6:30 p.m. The committee voted unanimously to table assigning a recommended budget figure. Sinclair recommended tabling the vote to give selectmen, budget committee members and residents more time to “digest” the workshop information. “I felt this was the beginning of the conversation. I want to give people a chance to weigh in and give feedback before we present our recommendation to the budget committee, on Feb. 28, and to selectmen, on March 5,” she said.

The committee will likely schedule a special meeting later this week to set the recommended budget figure. Kahler isn’t available Friday, and Sinclair didn’t want to schedule the meeting for the week of Feb. 19-23, school vacation.

In other action, Principal Tom Landberg received approval to start a remote learning plan pilot program. The plan entails sending students home with a packet designed for three hours of homework. School officials would initiate the plan if school was going to be closed. 

Landberg said assignments wouldn’t reflect “new learning,” but will act as a review. “If a student doesn’t complete their assignments, they will be marked absent, but they can submit it late, and receive credit, too,” he said.

Boothbay Harbor resident Tom Perkins asked via Zoom about a Community School District custodian working full-time at the Eddy school. “Yes, there is a custodian working here who is on the CSD payroll,” Sinclair said. “It’s an ongoing process, and the CSD will be reimbursed. That’s all I will say now due to confidentiality purposes.”

The committee accepted educational technician Connor Theroux’s resignation. The committee also adopted an updated immunizations policy which conforms to state laws.

The next scheduled committee meeting is at 6 p.m. Monday, March 11 in the school cafeteria.