Small turnout for school budget hearing

GORHAM — Just 15 people were in attendance for the GRS Cooperative School District's public budget hearing on Wednesday. The school administration presented a $8.5 million budget for the 2012-13 school year and ratified the final figures and warrant that will go before the voters in a short meeting immediately following the hearing.

The total appropriation includes recommended warrant articles, and comes in just $12,639 higher than last year's budget, and increase of 0.15 percent. SAU 20 Superintendent Paul Bousquet said that cuts were made to keep that increase low since the cost of oil was budgeted 50 cents per gallon higher, increasing that line alone $20,000 for fiscal year 2013. “We've been pretty frugal,” Bousquet said.

He added that no teachers or administrators would receive raises. There is however, a tentative negotiated one-year agreement with the support staff on the warrant that will cost taxpayers $37 in total.

The salaries line us up, but not due to raises. SAU Finance Administrator Pauline Plourde said that a $91,000 rise in salary costs is owed to the need to hire additional paraprofessionals to meet the needs of Special Education students and an English as a Second Language teacher. The Milan school district will contribute $59,000 to offset a portion of the increase.

The new support staff contract includes a health care concession that raises the staff's office visit co-payments from $10 to $20, resulting in a savings of $10,783. In return, the staffers will receive salary increases totaling $10,820, leaving taxpayers in Gorham, Randolph and Shelburne a difference of $37 to make up.

Plourde presented the budget break-down via PowerPoint presentation. In it she pointed out that close to 60 percent of the budget is made up of negotiated employee salaries and benefits. The district will see a substantial reduction in health insurance costs of around $68,000, but that is being countered by an increase in state retirement costs of $45,000. The insurance costs went down when the district switched providers from Local Government Center (LGC) to Primex.

With costs fairly well contained at less than one percent increase, school officials explained that a loss of revenue will likely mean a raise in the tax rates for the three member towns. They ball-parked these increases at $1.18 for Gorham, $0.22 for Randolph, and $0.36 for Shelburne. The decrease in revenue, and big jump in Gorham's estimated rate increase stems mainly from the exhaustion of the capital reserve fund that had been used to offset the building renovation bond payments for the last three years. There are two years left on the five year bond, and last year Gorham was able to offset $214,000 of their bond obligation through the use of the capital reserve. State and federal aid is expected to be down around $72,000 and the surplus fund balance is estimated at $106,000 less than last year. Plourde explained that she is always conservative with the fund balance estimate and would rather estimate low and be able to give more back, than estimate high and end up with less than she thought.

Technology spending was a topic the audience wanted more information on, asking about the plan and cost to purchase computers for teachers. Jeff Stewart asked about the cost of the laptop computers being ordered for the teachers and why they were so expensive. “I think $1,700 per computer...that's outrageous,” Stewart said. Plourde explained that 15 of the district's 47 laptop computers that are more than seven years old are slated to be replaced this year. Administrators said that all the computer purchases are made through Dell and include a three year warrant with on-site technical support. “We do use Dells exclusively,” Bousquet said. “They've held up.”

The cost includes all necessary software, an extended life battery, and a newer docking station so they can interact with the smart boards when appropriate. Bousquet assured the crowd that cost-saving measures were being looked at in his conversations with other superintendents, specifically the possibility of group purchasing.

Warrant highlights include:

*$30,000 to purchase a one-ton plow: SAU officials said that although the town of Gorham public works maintains the school, depending on the timing of the snowfall, there are occasions when it would be helpful to have their own equipment to get the schools open. “If we could give them I hand I think it would do well for everybody,” said Bousquet.

*$5,000 to be added to the Technology Capital Reserve Fund from surplus.

*$10,000 to be added to the Tuition Expendable Trust Fund from surplus.

*$5,000 to be added to the Energy Expendable Trust Fund from surplus.

*$20,000 to be added to the Bus Capital Reserve Fund from surplus.