Boxborough Finance Committee Debates School Budget Guidance as Levy Limit Looms

BOXBOROUGH -- October 15, 2024, Boxborough Finance Committee debates school budget limits as town levy ceiling threatens to bind. Meeting October 15 with Acton-Boxborough Regional School Committee member Adam Klein, the committee reviewed a preliminary budget model showing town spending could exceed the levy limit under current assumptions, which include a placeholder 6 percent town operating increase and a 7 percent school increase, figures Chair Tony Newton stressed publicly "have no basis in reality" with union contract negotiations underway. Klein told the committee that even a zero-dollar school budget increase would raise Boxborough's assessment by 3.5 percent due to enrollment-driven formula changes, and that a 2 percent school budget increase would produce roughly a 6 percent rise in the town's share; the school committee is set to vote budget guidelines November 21. Finance Committee member Maria Nayland read aloud a statement she had delivered to the school committee, saying a $150,000 district consultant appeared focused on improving elementary schools rather than cutting costs: "Without meaningful structural changes to the way the school district operates and budgets, you will continue to send more than the two towns can afford." The committee also reached a consensus against supporting a Community Preservation Committee surcharge increase from 1 percent to 2 percent this year, and reported the Fire Station Building Committee has narrowed candidate sites to three after eliminating 975 Mass Ave, whose new owner cited a $3.5 million asking price.