The $10.74 million budget proposal Wiscasset's school committee passed 5-0 July 8 asks $152,151 less from local taxpayers than the offer voters passed in an April town meeting and rejected at the polls in June, according to the revenue sheet Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kim Andersson provided. That brings the one-year hike in the local ask from 4.54% under the failed, $10.89 million offer to 2.31% under this one.

July 10, Andersson planned to give Town Manager Dennis Simmons the warrant for a July 23 special town meeting she said will be at Wiscasset Elementary School due to the renovations under way in Wiscasset Middle High School's Stover Auditorium. The warrant released in selectmen's packet later July 10 for their July 15 meeting lists a 6 p.m. start time on the special town meeting. Andersson said the budget that comes out of that meeting goes on to a vote at the polls Sept. 4. 

Before the committee nodded the budget offer, member Doug Merrill wondered if all pieces perennially over-funded have been found, or if there are more. Andersson said having less money left over to roll into the fund balance is a transition and has been underway in her time as superintendent. "We are bringing (those numbers) down, finding those efficiencies ... If you asked me to find more money (in this budget), I'm probably going to look at staff.”

It looked to Vice Chair Jonathan Barnes like there might be room elsewhere, like in supplies or in tuition for coursework personnel take. “There's money to pay for tuition if somebody after the last second decides to take a class and we didn't know about it. That was just one example.”

Andersson responded, "You guys have done due diligence. And you have looked really closely at every line and we have reduced the budget that was put to taxpayers (at a special town meeting) on April 29 by over $150,000. We've cut the increase to the local taxation in half, and it is below the rate of inflation, and it is 25% below what some of our neighboring towns are going through right now in their budgets. So, I think it's a fair budget that meets the needs of taxpayers and students, and also will help us as we transition off of subsidy and fund balance in our three to five-year plan.”

"Right. I just think we would need less subsidy and less fund balance if we tightened up the budget," Barnes said. He and Andersson noted the tight timeframe required to get a budget back to voters. 

"I think you guys have done great work ... Thank you so much," Andersson said.

"No. Thank you. You've worked very hard," Merrill said.