Guide to the 2021-2022 West Bath Education Referendum
The West Bath School Board of Directors has proposed a K-12 education operating budget for fiscal year 2021-2022. Pursuant to Order of the Governor, the town meeting where the school budget articles are presented has been replaced by a town referendum to be held on June 8, 2021. Residents may vote in person or by absentee ballot.
The budget, which was unanimously approved by both the School Board of Directors and the West Bath Budget Advisory Committee, contains an increase of 1.54% over the prior year. As there was no increase to the local contribution for the 2020-2021 school year, this current increase to the local contribution is a 4.41% increase from the 2019-2020 school year.
Typically, in the town meeting format, residents vote on each individual expense category, before voting on the overall proposed budget. In the referendum format, the school budget will be voted on in a single approval question (article 42) as required by state law.
The following K-12 education budget articles will be considered at a Town referendum election to be held on June 8, 2021:
ARTICLE 42 -School Budget. Shall the Town appropriate the sum of $3,962,584.33 and raise the sum of $3,434,748.45 for the 2021-2022 school budget?
School Board of Directors Recommends a “Yes” Vote.
| VOTER INFORMATION FOR ARTICLE 42
The Town’s school budget submitted in this Article totals $3,962,584.33. It includes locally raised funds in the amount of $3,434,748.45. The locally raised amount exceeds the state’s Essential Programs and Services spending model by $1,238,808.93. This budget includes these expenditure category cost centers: |
|
| Expenditures | Proposed Amounts |
| Regular Instruction | $ 2,340,385.95 |
| Special Education | $ 688,332.41 |
| Career and Technical Education | $ 0.00 |
| Other Instruction | $ 4,500.00 |
| Student and Staff Support | $ 265,429.27 |
| System Administration | $ 97,954.95 |
| School Administration | $ 212,324.55 |
| Transportation | $ 156,022.80 |
| Facilities Maintenance | $ 162,634.40 |
| Debt Service and Other Commitments | $ 0.00 |
| Other Expenditures, including Food Service | $ 35,000.00 |
| Total | $ 3,962,584.33 |
Explanation: The Town’s contribution to the total cost of funding public education from pre-kindergarten to grade 12 as described in the Essential Programs and Services Funding Act is the amount of money determined by state law to be the minimum amount that the Town must raise and assess in order to receive the full amount of state dollars.
The additional local funds are those locally raised funds over and above the Town’s local contribution to the total cost of funding public education from pre-kindergarten to grade 12 as described in the Essential Programs and Services Funding Act and local amounts raised for the annual payment on non-state funded debt service that will help achieve the Town budget for educational programs. Additional local funds represent local costs to support education that are not included in the state’s funding model, such as costs for transportation, tuition, and special education services.
ARTICLE 43- Cost Center Transfers. Shall the School Board of Directors be authorized to transfer amounts exceeding 5% of the total appropriation for any cost center to another cost center or among other cost centers for the 2021-2022 fiscal year, provided that transfers shall not be permitted to increase the authorized total school budget?
School Board of Directors Recommends a “Yes” Vote.
ARTICLE 44- Aid for Other Programs. Shall the School Board of Directors be authorized to accept and expend any state, federal, and other grants, aid, and receipts during the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2021 and ending June 30, 2022 for school purposes, provided that such grants, aid, and receipts do not require the expenditure of other local funds not previously appropriated?
School Board of Directors Recommends a “YES” Vote.
ARTICLE 45- Additional State Subsidy. In the event that the Town receives more state education subsidy than the amount included in its budget, shall the School Board of Directors be authorized to use all or part of the additional state subsidy to increase expenditures for school purposes in cost center categories approved by the School Board of Directors, increase the allocation of finances in a reserve fund approved by the School Board of Directors, and/or decrease the local cost share expectation, as defined in Title 20-A, section 15671-A(1)(B), for local property taxpayers for funding public education as approved by the School Board of Directors?
School Board of Directors Recommends a YES vote.
ARTICLE 46- Continuing School Budget Validation Referendum. Do you wish to reinstated the school budget validation referendum process for three years?
| VOTER INFORMATION FOR ARTICLE 46
A “YES” vote will require the Town to conduct a referendum to validate its annual school budget for the next three years. A “NO” vote will discontinue the school budget validation referendum for at least three years and provide instead that the annual school budget shall be finally adopted at an annual meeting of the Town voters. |
School Board of Directors Recommends a NO vote.
To watch the public hearing, please click this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xi39xyYOJlM
Please click here for the full budget summary document.
If you have questions or would like further information about the education referendum question, please contact Emily Thompson, West Bath SAU Superintendent, at ethompson@westbathschool.org or by calling 207.443.9145.
Thank you,
Emily Thompson