SALEM – Residents in every town of MSAD 58 ratified, by a 123-33 vote today, a $10.2 million school budget. The towns’ voting results were as follows:
Yes No
Strong 40 9
Phillips 26 10
Eustis 14 3
Kingfield 28 9
Avon 15 2
The 2009-2010 budget technically represents a $324,000 increase from the current school budget, or 3.19 percent. However, the vast majority of the increase will not be borne locally, as Superintendent Quenten Clark pointed out at the public meeting held in the Mt. Abram High School cafeteria Thursday night.
The state has changed the way it intends to pay for some special services in MSAD 58, shifting new line items into the budget. These include the inclusion of State Agency Clients, children in foster homes or under the care of the state which are tuitioned to MSAD 58 schools, and services rendered to children from the Unorganized Territories. The increases caused by this change are made up in the increased revenue which the district will now receive.
At Thursday’s meeting, more than 75 residents of MSAD 58’s member communities approved a $10.2 million budget in short order after some debate.
