NEW: Wachusett School Committee Reduces Town Assessments

Thursday, May 17, 2012

Sandy Meindersma, GoLocalWorcester Reporter

The Wachusett Regional School District Committee unanimously voted to reduce the member towns' assessments by $455,566,the exact amount by which its Chapter 70 aid was increased in the Senate Ways and Means budget.

The assessment reduction does not affect the district’s fiscal 2013 operating budget, which remains at $79,284,670, but instead reduces the amount each of the five towns owes for its share of the district's operating budget.

Superintendent Thomas G. Pandiscio said credit for the additional funding goes to Senator Stephen Brewer, chairman of the Senate Ways and Means Committee, who worked with Pandiscio last summer to understand the district's revenue problem.

"There were a lot of zeros - most towns did not get anything, but we did, because of the four towns that have been paying more than their target share," Pandiscio said. "The intent of this money was to allow us to spend more on school children."

Pandiscio recommended that the school committee vote to reduce town assessments by the amount of the additional state aid. "This is a fairly solid number," he said. "Three towns still have town meetings, and it would be neighborly of us to allow Holden to re-appropriate the $190,000 from the reduced assessement."

Savings to Towns

The additional state money means that Princeton's assessment will drop by $32,342; Paxton's will go down by $43,972; Rutland's will go down by $104,679 and Sterling's assessment will decrease by $78,034. Together, the towns will pay $51,038,683 for the school budget, assuming it is approved.

Rutland's Assessment Still Too HIgh

Rutland Selectman Sheila Dibb asked the committee to reduce the budget by an additional $415,000, since the town's override failed by nearly 4 to 1 margin. "We still have to turn off street lights and close our community center," she said.

Dibb's request did not even make it to a vote.

"I cannot ask the other 16 people to reduce the budget further," Colleen Cipro, a committee member from Rutland said. "There's no way they would go along with that."

Budget Still Needs Approval from Towns

Pandiscio provided the school committee with options for possible cuts in the event that the budget is not approved in at least two of the three towns still left to vote on it. Rutland town meeting is Saturday; Holden and Paxton's meetings are Monday; Sterling and Princeton have already approved the $79.2 million budget. Four of the five towns must approve the budget for it to take effect.