Loss of state aid and rising costs have led to a grim situation in School Administrative District 15, as Superintendent Victoria Burns presented a proposed budget that includes the loss of six full-time teaching positions.

The budget proposal, which will be reviewed by the Board of Directors beginning Saturday at 9 a.m. at Gray-New Gloucester Middle School, includes an expectation that state subsidy will drop by $600,000 next year in a roughly $20 million budget, Burns said. Fixed costs are expected to rise around $600,000, meaning the district must find $1.2 million in savings in order to offer a spending plan with no tax increase, Burns said.

The spending in the proposed budget is $20.4 million, a decrease of $664,142 from this year’s budget. Significant cuts were made from each of the cost centers with the exception of transportation, she said. The district will undergo a review of its bus routes in the next year to see if any efficiencies can be found, Burns said.

In order to create the savings, the proposed budget eliminates six full-time teachers, including three at the high school. It would also cut five part-time teaching positions, the equivalent of three and a half educational technicians, three special education positions, two guidance counselors and one and a half secretarial positions. The resource officer at the high school is also eliminated in the budget.

The budget also includes savings of $100,000 due to the end of payments on a bond approved in 2005 for capital improvements. The technology budget was also decreased by $100,000, and additional savings was created by reducing instructional supplies and equipment purchases.

The federal stimulus package could bring some relief, Burns said, but it is too early to tell how much money the district will get and how it will have to be spent, she said.

The district is delivering education efficiently and effectively, Burns told the school board. SAD 15’s per pupil cost of $9,980 is lower than the state average of $10,657, and a larger than average portion of that is dedicated to instruction, she said.

School administrative costs, however, are higher than average. A second assistant principal position was retained at the high school because the budget eliminates the resource officer and a guidance counselor position, Burns said.