Voters in the four towns of School Administrative District 75 unanimously approved four budget article amendments that removed $1.2 million in charter school funding from its previously proposed $38.1 million budget. About 65 voters in Bowdoin, Bowdoinham, Harpswell and Topsham adopted a $36,922,143 school budget for 2015-16 at the Orion Performing Arts Center Thursday night. With those reductions, the total local cost increase dropped from 8.27 percent down to only 2.65

percent. The school board approved a $38,126,428 spending plan at its May 7 meeting but planned to remove $1.2 million in expenditures for charter schools once Gov. Paul LePage signed LD 131 as expected that will fund charter schools as if each were a separate entity rather than through the local district. LePage signed that bill last week. Topsham voters just approved a 2015-16 municipal budget Wednesday night and according to town officials, if the school department reduced its budget Thursday by the $1.2 million, that will lower its projected tax rate increase of $1.48 per $1,000 of assessed value down to $1.01 per $1,000 of assessed value. That lowers the tax increase from 8.6 percent down to 5.8 percent. According to valuations provided to SAD 75 in March, the school district has estimated what the tax rate increase will be for each of the four towns based on the adopted 2015-16 school

budget. Bowdoin currently has a tax rate of $13.90 per $1,000 of assessed value. Bowdoinham’s tax rate is $16.25; Harpswell’s tax rate is $6.10 and Topham’s tax rate is $17.33. With the spending plan adopted Thursday, Bowdoin would see an estimated tax rate increase of $0.38 per

$1,000 of assessed value; Bowdoinham a $0.32 increase; Harpswell a $0.05 increase and Topsham a $0.34 tax rate increase. These tax rates will be impacted by their town’s total valuation when towns complete their tax commitments in late summer. SAD 75 has estimated what the annual tax bill increase will look like for home owners in each of the towns based on the typical home. For a home assessed at $178,000 in Bowdoin, the tax bill would increase $67.43 and in Bowdoinham, by $56.10. A home assessed at $425,000 in Harpswell would see a $20.60 increase on the tax bill and a home assessed at $182,500 in Topsham would see an increase of $46.28. Voters in the four towns still must show up at the polls June 9 to vote the school budget up or down in the budget validation referendum.

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