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Newport, N.H., School Board Approves 8.8 Percent Budget Increase

Posted on: Monday, 19 December 2005, 15:00 CST

By Rebecca Miller, Eagle Times, Claremont, N.H.

Dec. 18--NEWPORT -- The Newport School Board approved an 8.8 percent increase in the proposed fiscal year 2006-2007 budget last week.

The budget proposal of $12,344,780 is about $1 million more than this year's budget of $11.35 million. The increase is largely due to higher fuel, insurance and special education expenses.

SAU 43 Superintendent Bill Mealey presented the budget Thursday. The board had requested that administration pare down a 12 percent increase to 6 percent. Mealey said it took a seven-hour meeting for administrators to agree on enough cuts to bring it down to 8.8 percent.

"None of us were pleased with the cuts," he told the board. Even with the cuts, it was a $1 million increase "without doing much of anything." The problem, according to Mealey, is that with the bulk of increases in items like heating and insurance costs, there is no room to add new initiatives. Many of the cuts or decisions to level fund items focused on supply, equipment and replacement line items.

Other areas affected are proposed new programs in middle school athletics, middle school summer school and textbooks for programs like science.

Board member Patty DiPadova pointed out that even just including increases for fuel oil, insurance and special education, the budget would still hit an 8 percent increase.

"I'm not prepared to cut into education," she said. "There's just some realities here that we can't change." The issue is also that the district has worked off of a default budget for several years.

"We're building on sand," Mealey told the board.

Board members debated some of the cuts in supplies and textbooks, lamenting that the budget comes down to the bottom line instead of new education initiatives.

"Something is being hurt and that has to be education," board chairman Steve Bohrer said.

In March, voters defeated the proposed operating budget of $12.63 million.

Numbers of the default budget for next year, which begins July 1, have not been calculated.

Although new teacher and paraeducator contracts have not been finalized, school officials say they are expected to be multi-year. Deliberations are in the final stages.

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Copyright (c) 2005, Eagle Times, Claremont, N.H.

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Source: Eagle Times, Claremont, New Hampshire

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