Concord School District Tax Rate Set: 1.89%

In an afternoon session on June 29, the Concord School Board Finance Committee analyzed budget items for the 2011-2012 school year and made a recommendation to set the local property tax rate increase to 1.89 percent, while restoring about one-third of the positions proposed to be eliminated earlier in the year.

School Superintendent Chris Rath updated the committee about potential staffing changes, federal grant allocations, and reserve fund transfers while Business Administrator Michele Croteau presented the latest schedule for the district’s elementary school consolidation projects.

Rath presented a five-page memo outlining changes in revenues, appropriations, and recommendations she was asking the committee to consider bringing back to the full board on July 5. The budget documents showed changes since January and April when budget estimates were not quite exact and the district implemented spending freezes and staffing cuts. In late January, district officials were expecting to levy a 3.95 percent tax increase, which later dropped to 2.8 percent in early April. The tax increase now is expected to be 1.89 percent, with each percentage point amounting to about $400,000, according to board member Jack Dunn.

“We feel we can reach that target,” Rath said.

In order to reach the lower property tax increase rate, district officials proposed eliminating 62.48 FTEs (full-time equivalents) earlier this year. Five and half FTEs were added back in April. In the latest figures, Rath proposed adding back another 23 positions, at a cost of more than $727,000. The end result of all the changes created about $1.1 million in available revenue. Rath proposed putting the money into the new school building projects ($567,720), to make up for lost state aid, and the rest into reserves ($534,000).

“I’m wondering how much sense that makes at this time,” said board member Eric Williams. “Maybe we need to revisit those spreadsheets.”

Williams, instead, proposed using the $1.1 million to restore other positions that were being cut – like the teaching assistants and the physical education teacher at Rundlett Middle School – as well as lowering the tax rate to 0 percent or maybe, even lower.

Members had mixed feelings about Williams’ proposal.

Dunn suggested the money was needed to get the district “back to par” on the building construction projects, after the state aid cut. But he also proposed putting some of the money into a building maintenance account. Board member Jennifer Patterson suggested using some of the money to buy new buses.

“It really is a trade-off when you are decreasing the tax rate,” added Kass Ardinger, school board president.

Croteau then handed out schedules for the school building project financing showing the projections including a line item called “Loss of Building Aid” with $531,816 in the space. She also said that instead of putting all the money in reserves, school board members could put a portion in reserves and a portion into the Superintendent’s Contingency Account, for future use.

Rath stated that in October, she would have a better idea of where grant funds were coming from as well.

Dunn said he didn’t mind the suggestion, “as long as we are back where we were” on the building funding.

Clint Conley, chairman of the Finance Committee, made a motion to put $567,720 towards the building fund and $534,000 into the Superintendent’s Contingency Account, which was approved by a 3-1 vote, with Williams voting against the proposal.

Patterson, surprised that Williams voted against the proposal, asked why, saying, “I thought this is what you wanted.”

Williams again reiterated that he wanted to look at restoring positions and lowering the tax rate increase, adding that he hoped board members would take another look at everything again in the near future.