The price of independence for School Administrative District 61 is a stiff one that district voters will confront as they vote for the budget this spring, one that will probably belie the state attempts to provide property tax relief for Maine residents.

To deal with a projected loss of at least $2.4 million in state subsidies and then cut costs mandated by the Reorganization Law passed by the Legislature in 2007, SAD 61 is ready to eliminate staff including educational technicians who assist teachers, bus drivers and cut hours for remaining staff. Four teaching positions will also be eliminated.

At a hearing Monday, the SAD 61 School Board outlined provisions of the budget with $979,000 in spending reductions to a skeptical crowd in Bridgton. Whether worried that the budget is being balanced on the backs of the staffers who seem the easieist to dispose of or that cuts will hurt the quality of education, critics called on the board to find other ways to save money, though specifics of how were not mentioned.

The irony is that state efforts to provide tax relief with both LD1, passed in 2005 to reformulate state aid to local school districts, and the Reorganization Law passed last summer, will likely cost property owners more in taxes in the SAD 61 towns of Bridgton, Casco, Naples and Sebago.

The district was already hit hard by lost subsidies over the last three years. Some of the losses were made up with “transitional funding,” provided by the state. That has also been eliminated this year. The rest of the decreases in subsidies were paid through property taxes.

Despite proposed cuts, the district will actually spend nearly $1.5 million more to offset the loss of state aid. Much of the money comes from reserves. Taxpayers will foot more than $400,000 making up the gap.

At the same time, the long-range spending plans in the district are hardly cosmetic. To gain acceptance for its plan to continue as an independent district without merging with SAD 55 and 72 as suggested by the state, the School Board submitted a plan to the Department of Education seeking to close at least four district buildings, one of which could be an elementary school. The others would likely be the administrative offices and adult and special education centers.

The plan has been accepted with the codicil that no students’ education will be adversely affected by spending cuts in administration, special education, transportation and facilities and maintenance.

Given the costs of fuel and insurance are rising inexorably, savings mandated by reorganization seem elusive. All sides will surely question what constitutes an adverse effect on education as the district moves forward.

And so the vise tightens. In a district where the director of transportation, Andy Madura, triples as the food service director and maintenance director, it is hard to see how cutting administrators will be the answer.

It is also hard to see how cutting one-third of the educational technician positions will help learning. It is hardest to see how state efforts at property tax relief won’t be more costly to SAD 61 taxpayers.

David Harry, editor

David Harry, editor