BYFIELD — After being faced with cutting town services last year to cover education costs, officials in two of the three Triton Regional School District communities are once again calling for little or no increases in their assessments for the coming school year.
Triton Regional School Committee last week took a first look at a tentative, level-services budget proposed for the 2012-13 school year.
While figures for the total operating budget were not announced, the preliminary numbers, based on state-mandated increases, mean all three communities would see their assessments rise — Newbury by 2.04 percent, Salisbury by 3.42 percent and Rowley by 4.25 percent.
Triton Superintendent Christopher Farmer reminded people that the tentative budget presented last week was just in the first stages and the preliminary review by the School Committee was to "give guidance to the administration on further development of the budget."
Initial discussion of the budget revealed uncertainties about the increases in health and dental insurance costs, though an 8 percent increase is anticipated. Additions to salary lines, such as for an incoming special education administrator, were noted, as were increases to cover new teachers at Pine Grove School and Newbury Elementary School with the aim of reducing class sizes.
The potential increase in assessments raised concern in Rowley and Newbury, where failed overrides last year resulted in severe reductions in services to meet their school assessments.
There was much dismay particularly from Rowley, which also had the highest increase in its assessment last year at 3.36 percent.
"It is distressing to hear that Triton is asking for any increase at this time, especially in light of last year's impact to Rowley's town services," Rowley Board of Selectmen Chairman Bob Snow said. "This increase is harmful to both the short-term and long-term fiscal life of the town of Rowley. The taxpayers of Rowley should find this assessment most disturbing and troubling."
Fellow Rowley Selectman Dick Cummings added he could not see an override passing this year and recommended the School Committee make cuts to its budget.
School Committee member Robin Williams said she also did not have faith an override would pass in her town of Newbury or the two other Triton communities. She asked the school administration to put together a budget "that reflects the very best guess of what the towns can afford."
"It is very clear that the towns are in desperate financial shape. I don't want us to decimate the Council on Aging, the town libraries or the schools ... we must work together," Williams said, urging parents and community members to attend an upcoming public hearing and comment on the budget.
The current Triton budget of $34.7 million represented a 2.09 percent increase over the previous year and did not fulfill the proposed zero percent assessment increase requested by the town managers in Newbury and Rowley.
According to documents provided last week for the 2012-13 budget discussion that included proposals from the principals and program managers of the district schools, additional costs to the proposed level-services budget would be necessary to achieve adequacy.
The tentative budget assumes level funding from the state, which will not be confirmed until about June 29, according to Assistant Superintendent Brian Forget.
"Our job as elected School Committee members is to put forth the best budget with the numbers we have to work with, and this is the best we can do," Triton School Committee Vice Chairwoman Deborah Choate said.
The formal tentative budget will be presented to the School Committee tomorrow night. Residents will get their chance to speak on the budget at a public hearing on Wednesday, Feb. 29.
Once approved, the tentative budget numbers will be sent to the towns, with the final budget being voted on at the March 14 Triton School Committee meeting. Once approved, the assessments will be finalized and certified to the towns.
All meetings are held in the Triton High School library and begin at 7 p.m.
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