FARMINGTON — During its second night of budget deliberations, the Regional School Unit 9 Board of Directors discussed $235,400 in reductions from the 2016-2017 budget, including reopening negotiated administrative contracts to try to find reductions in salaries.

After voters in six of the district’s ten towns shot down a $32.97 million proposed budget at the polls on June 14 by a vote of 1,757 to 1,518, directors have begun the process of devising a budget for a second time this budget cycle.

Gary Smith, superintendent of Regional School Unit 18, speaks during a school budget meeting May 12 at Messalonskee High School in Oakland. Staff file photo by Michael G. Seamans

The district brought to the board $218,400 worth of the reductions discussed on Thursday. After Tuesday’s deliberations seemed to produce no results with directors going back through the facilities and maintenance budget line by line, the board asked Superintendent Tom Ward to bring forth recommended reductions from administrators for guidance.

In addition to these reductions, Mt. Blue High School Principal Bruce Mochamer and Cascade Brook School Principal Nichole Goodpseed came to the board representing district administrators who are offering to renegotiate set salary increases for the 2016-2017 year.

Administrators are going into the second year of an already negotiated two-year contract. Within that closed contract is a set salary increase for the upcoming year, which Mochamer said administrators are willing to negotiate cutting by 37 percent.

“We know everyone is giving up something,” Mochamer said “This is where we say we’re going to be part of the team, we’re going to be part of the solution.”

The board approved reopening contract negotiations for the district’s administrators, and Ward said this could result in another $17,000 in reductions.

Mochamer stressed that reopening closed contract negotiations has never been done before in the district, and that he did not want this to set a precedent for future budget cycles.

The failed $32.97 million is a 2.9 percent increase over last year’s budget. Ward said the district is aiming to bring the increase down to at least 2.2 percent in the second budget they presents to voters. The reductions considered at Thursday’s meeting represent a 2.17 percent increase.

If the board is able to bring the budget down to a 2.2 percent increase, Ward said the new figure would represent a decrease in local allocations for eight of the district’s towns.

Chesterville would see a decrease of $17,384; Farmington would see a decrease of $105,192 dollars; Industry would see a decrease of $12,192; New Sharon would see a decrease of $29,265; New Vineyard would see a decrease of $1,843; Temple would see a decrease of $19,195; Vienna would see a decrease of $6,602 and Wilton would see the largest decrease of $133,568.

Stark’s allocation would increase $16,447, which is $30,000 lower than what their allocation would have been if the $32.97 million was approved. For Weld, an increase of $30,654, would remain essentially the same, Ward said.

In the first round of the budget only four towns saw a decrease.

Included in the reductions discussed at Thursday’s meeting was a zero percent salary increase for the superintendent, representing a reduction of $2,400; leaving a world language position at Mt. Blue Middle School vacant, a savings of $48,000; two retirements, totaling a $35,000 savings; reducing the stipend for the Mt. Blue High School assistant athletic director by $5,000; reducing the district’s contingency fund by $80,000; and getting a new HVAC contract for a reduction of $25,000.

A motion was made to send a $32,737,780 budget to voters, but the motion failed because directors expressed wanting to do further discuss the reductions presented.

This is the second year in a row that the board has had to go back to square one with devising a budget after voters rejected their initial figure. Last year, voters narrowly passed the $32.04 million budget at a second referendum vote in July. Voters at the first referendum vote in June rejected a proposed $32.25 million budget, by a vote of 1045 to 741.

An additional $50,000 is also being creased from the district’s carry over fund to further lower the local allocations.

Deliberations will continues on Tuesday, when directors are scheduled to set a budget figure. The second districtwide meeting is scheduled for July 14 followed by a validation vote in each of the district’s towns on July 28.

Lauren Abbate — 861-9252

labbate@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @Lauren_M_Abbate

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