School budget revote: As you likely know, the school district received a petition for reconsideration of the FY11 school budget that passed on Town Meeting Day.  The board met on April 14^th, signed a Warning for the revote and established the date for the informational meeting.

Informational Meeting: The informational meeting for the revote on the school budget will take place on Tuesday, May 11, beginning at 7pm at the Westford Elementary School. We hope you will plan to attend.

Date for revote: The revote will take place on Tuesday, May 18^th at Westford School.  The polls will be open from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.  Because we now vote budget issues by Australian Ballot, there is a specific manner in which the reconsideration vote must occur.  (The process differs from how budget considerations occurred in the former Town Meeting format.)

The question to be considered by voters will be: “Shall the Town of Westford School District authorize the sum of $5,268,238 to be spent during the 2010-2011 school year for school purposes (as lastly voted on March 2, 2010)?” Those who believe the school budget should be reaffirmed will vote “Yes”.  Those who oppose passage of the school budget will vote “No”.

The board hopes you will attend the information meeting on May 11^th.  If you are unable to do so, you may review information on the school budget by reading the Town Report or by visiting www.ccsuvt.org/school-boards.   Please don’t hesitate to contact a school board member if you have questions after reviewing this information.

The following are some highlights about the school budget:

• “Better than average results at lower than average cost.” Compared to state-wide average scores, Westford’s student achievement test scores are much higher.  Our cost, as measured by the number that drives tax rates, is $302/pupil lower than the state average.  Westford residents pay less in school taxes than taxpayers in over half of the other school districts in the state.
• 80% of the budget increase is due to increased high school tuition costs: The overall budget increase is 1.4%.  High school tuition accounts for 4/5ths of this increase.  The board has no control over this cost.
• Staff reductions net a savings of nearly $87,000: As enrollments have declined, the board has made a concerted effort to reduce certified staff as the reduced enrollment allows.  In fact, since 2000, the number of certified staff in the school has been reduced by 25%.  This focus on staffing the school at the appropriate levels is largely the reason for our lower than average per pupil cost.
• Projected tax impacts related to the budget may change: The legislature has still not set the base property tax rates for FY11.  The base rate for those who pay some or all of their bill based on their household income will remain at 1.8%.
• The increase in the homestead PROPERTY tax rate is largely driven by factors outside of the budget: Over half the increase in the property tax rate associated with the budget is driven by factors beyond the board’s control; namely the base rate set by the state and the CLA (Common Level of Appraisal) for Westford.  We have not yet been informed by the state of the base rate.  Last year, Westford properties were reappraised.  Following communities’ reappraisal, the state sets each community’s CLA.  All of us who paid some or all of our school tax bill based on the value of our property benefited last year from this rate being set at 104.72%.  Unfortunately we will make up for that benefit in next year’s taxes as the CLA drops to 100.95%.

Much of the conversation around the petition to reconsider the passage of the school budget has focused on projected tax increases associated with the budget.  A review of these projections may be helpful.  For those who pay school taxes based on income, the increase is 3.64% or $45 per $50,000 of household income.  The rate is lower than the income rate associated with the FY2006 budget.  Someone whose household income is the same as it was in FY2006 will pay less for this budget than they did for the FY2006 budget.

For those who pay school taxes based on property, the situation is less certain.  When we wrote our Town Report article, we projected the associated tax rates based on the base rate recommended by the Vermont Department of Taxes in December, 2009.   Using that base rate of 88.2 cents, the tax rate associated with this budget would increase by 10%, or $113 per $100,000 of assessed value.  Since that time, the Vermont House passed a miscellaneous tax bill which lowered the base rate to 86 cents.  Were that to be the final decision of the legislature, the property tax increase would be 7.27% or $82 per $100,000 of assessed value.  By May 18th the legislature will likely have adjourned and we will know the exact property tax impact associated with the school budget passed on Town Meeting Day.

The school board recognizes that the projected tax increase for those who pay school taxes based on the value of their property is daunting, especially viewed in the context of a single year.  Many of the factors driving this rate are beyond the school board’s control.  We have put together a 2010-2011 budget that reflects declining enrollment at the elementary school and maintains the quality of education offered.  Finding the right balance between the needs of our students and the needs of taxpayers in this year with so many factors beyond our control was challenging.

Please call or e-mail a school board member if you have a question about the school budget.  Please remember to attend the informational meeting on May 11^th and to VOTE on May 18^th.

Sincerely, the Westford School Board

• Martha Heath, Chair, 893-1921
• Andre Roy, Vice-Chair, 879-9511
• Jennifer Townsend, Clerk, 879-3963
• Marilyn McConnell, Member, 879-6093
• Allison Weinhagen, Member, 878-5804