At the beginning of March, the Chariho School Committee restored funding for a teaching position to the budget due to concerns over the impact it could have on class sizes. They hoped that a budget with less than a 2% increase in spending would be accepted by the community. However, the proposed 2022-23 Chariho Regional School District budget was rejected at referendum Tuesday by a margin of 1,062 to 815.
The proposed $55.77 million budget, which included $1.07 million in new spending, received majority support in Charlestown, with voters approving the budget in that community 286 to 133. In Richmond and Hopkinton, however, the budget was rejected by 175 votes or more. Richmond residents voted 455 to 269 against the budget, and despite an anticipated increase of just 1.2% in Hopkinton, voters overwhelmingly voted against the proposal, 474 to 260.
Superintendent of Schools Gina Picard said the results send a clear message that residents expect further cuts to spending and acknowledged that the School Committee will be faced with some tough decisions in the coming weeks. Under the Chariho Act, the School Committee must now meet within 15 days and submit a revised budget determined to be “the minimum amount necessary to allow the regional school district to operate for the ensuing fiscal year in compliance with its contractual obligations and the mandates of applicable federal and state laws.” That budget will then need to be submitted within 30 days of the previous referendum, and sent back to the towns for another vote.
Catherine Giusti, vice chairwoman of the School Committee, said she is confident that Picard and Director of Administration and Finance Director Ned Draper will be able to help guide the committee to a fair revised budget that minimizes spending. Picard said the district will do its best to get as close to a zero-increase budget as possible, but will face numerous challenges as administrators also have to balance growing costs related to high inflation rates and energy prices.
The proposal rejected on Tuesday had already included $420,164 in reductions made by the School Committee prior to being sent to referendum. The town is also still working with state Sen. Dennis Algiere and state Rep. Brian Patrick Kennedy to offset cuts proposed by Gov. Dan McKee to the district’s transportation funding, money that if reinstated would bring $590,584 to the district, officials said. The latest proposal did include an additional $80,000 that was restored by the School Committee on March 8, however.
A week prior, a public hearing resulted in just 10 speakers but did lead to comments by nearly half those who spoke requesting a zero-increase budget. Hopkinton Town Council member Scott Bill Hirst has also been a vocal opponent of the budget, a tension made worse with the resignation of Pastor David Stall from the School Committee last year, and Hirst publicly called on residents to reject the budget at several points over the past two weeks.
Picard said there isn’t a lot of excess in the budget to cut as is, and the district will need to be creative in looking at solutions to cut costs while simultaneously continuing to return to normal following significant operational impact from the pandemic in the past few years.
At the beginning of March, the Chariho School Committee restored funding for a teaching position to the budget due to concerns over the impact it could have on class sizes. They hoped that a budget with less than a 2% increase in spending would be accepted by the community. However, the proposed 2022-23 Chariho Regional School District budget was rejected at referendum Tuesday by a margin of 1,062 to 815.
The proposed $55.77 million budget, which included $1.07 million in new spending, received majority support in Charlestown, with voters approving the budget in that community 286 to 133. In Richmond and Hopkinton, however, the budget was rejected by 175 votes or more. Richmond residents voted 455 to 269 against the budget, and despite an anticipated increase of just 1.2% in Hopkinton, voters overwhelmingly voted against the proposal, 474 to 260.
Superintendent of Schools Gina Picard said the results send a clear message that residents expect further cuts to spending and acknowledged that the School Committee will be faced with some tough decisions in the coming weeks. Under the Chariho Act, the School Committee must now meet within 15 days and submit a revised budget determined to be “the minimum amount necessary to allow the regional school district to operate for the ensuing fiscal year in compliance with its contractual obligations and the mandates of applicable federal and state laws.” That budget will then need to be submitted within 30 days of the previous referendum, and sent back to the towns for another vote.
Catherine Giusti, vice chairwoman of the School Committee, said she is confident that Picard and Director of Administration and Finance Director Ned Draper will be able to help guide the committee to a fair revised budget that minimizes spending. Picard said the district will do its best to get as close to a zero-increase budget as possible, but will face numerous challenges as administrators also have to balance growing costs related to high inflation rates and energy prices.
The proposal rejected on Tuesday had already included $420,164 in reductions made by the School Committee prior to being sent to referendum. The town is also still working with state Sen. Dennis Algiere and state Rep. Brian Patrick Kennedy to offset cuts proposed by Gov. Dan McKee to the district’s transportation funding, money that if reinstated would bring $590,584 to the district, officials said. The latest proposal did include an additional $80,000 that was restored by the School Committee on March 8.
A week prior, a public hearing resulted in just 10 speakers but did lead to comments by nearly half those who spoke requesting a zero-increase budget. Hopkinton Town Council member Scott Bill Hirst has also been a vocal opponent of the budget, a tension made worse with the resignation of Pastor David Stall from the School Committee last year, and Hirst publicly called on residents to reject the budget at several points over the past two weeks.
Picard said there isn’t a lot of excess in the budget to cut as is, and the district will need to be creative in looking at solutions to cut costs while simultaneously continuing to return to normal following significant operational impact from the pandemic in the past few years.