Bristol Warren Regional School Committee members will ask the Joint Finance Committee for a 3 percent increase in local education spending this coming school year, after a 5-4 vote on the budget …
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Bristol Warren Regional School Committee members will ask the Joint Finance Committee for a 3 percent increase in local education spending this coming school year, after a 5-4 vote on the budget Thursday evening.
The committee's request — $55,985,792 — is $2.3 million short of the district's projected needs for the coming year, and even if approved by the JFC will necessitate a host of layoffs, programmatic changes and the moving of the district's main office from the Oliver School in Bristol to Mt. Hope High School and Kickemuit Middle School. However, earlier fears that sports would be eliminated will not be realized, as a tabulated list of cuts and their impacts does not include the elimination of any sports teams.
The 3 percent local increase request came after an earlier vote to send a 4 percent local increase to the JFC failed 4-5.
Voting for the 3 percent figure were school committee members Nicky Piper, Carly Reich, Victor Cabral, Sarah Bullard and Marge McBride. Voting against were members Tara Thibaudeau, Sheila Ellsworth, Karen Cabral and Erin Schofield. Ms. Schofield had earlier voted for the 4 percent increase, and said after the meeting that she supported 4 percent, not 3, and thus voted against the lower number. Both Ms. Thibaudeau and Ms. Ellsworth said during the meeting that they would not support any budget request put to vote Thursday evening.
This was the second school committee budget meeting in four days. On Monday, committee members asked Superintendent Dr. Jonathan Brice to come up with a presentation showing exactly where potential cuts would come. To start off Thursday's meeting, he went through the list. Even if the budget passes JFC review as planned, cuts will include:
The Joint Finance Committee will have its first budget review meeting on Thursday, March 11.