The Bristol Select Board set the date for a special town meeting to vote on the updated education budget at its meeting on Wednesday, April 1.
The meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 28, in the gymnasium of Bristol Consolidated School.
During the annual town meeting on March 17, Bristol residents did not approve the proposed education budget of $8,359,130.96, an increase in expenses of $187,745.38 or 2.3% from the previous year.
Residents, budget committee members, and school committee members spent over two hours discussing the education budget, particularly Article 40 regarding the $332,360.94 system administration line, an increase $97,094.74 or 41.27%. Housed within the line are the funds for Bristol’s assessment for the superintendent and executive director positions within Johns Bay Coastal Alliance Education Service Center. As of July 1, Bristol and South Bristol will withdraw from AOS 93 to form a two-town education service center.
The Bristol Budget Committee unanimously voted against recommending the system administration line, citing a high cost compared to the size of the student body at Bristol Consolidated School.
During the annual town meeting, multiple budget committee members urged voters to turn down the article and have the school committee revise it. After Article 40 was not approved by voters, a motion was made not to consider Articles 47 and 48, which covered raising and appropriating the total cost of the budget. The motion passed, and the final cost of the budget was not considered.
The Bristol School Committee met the morning of Thursday, April 2 to revise the budget, which was approved at the school committee meeting later that day. The revised budget totals $8,290,085.96, a decrease of $69,045 or 0.82% from the first proposal.
According to Bristol Town Administrator Rachel Bizarro, town attorney Dan Stockford, of the Lewiston-based firm Brann & Isaacson, has advised the revised budget needs amended. The revised budget contains a decrease to the school administration line, however, voters approved the original amount at the annual town meeting. As such, Stockford advised the amount cannot be changed because the vote is considered closed, according to Bizarro.
The school committee will meet at 4:15 p.m. on Friday, April 10 in the music room of Bristol Consolidated School to consider the opinion of the town attorney.
AOS 93 Executive Director of Finance and Special Services Peter Nielsen, who will become the executive director of Johns Bay Coastal Alliance Education Service Center on July 1, said the school committee is prepared to make changes to the school administration line if necessary.
Bizarro said the town attorney recommended the meeting be scheduled no more than 45 days after the town meeting. She suggested April 28 because was within the 45-day window and does not conflict with other municipal meetings.
With little discussion, the select board agreed to hold the special town meeting on April 28. No formal vote was taken. The select board will sign the warrant for the meeting during its meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 15.
The budget committee will meet at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, April 13 at the town office to discuss the updated education budget.
Four budget committee members were also appointed during the select board’s April 1 meeting. The terms of Julian “Jef” Howell, A. Michael Melville, Sandee Brackett, and Sandra Lucore all expired at the annual town meeting.
The select board received seven applications for the four seats.
Howell and Lucore were reappointed to serve three-year terms. Melville and Brackett did not submit applications for another term.
Newcomers Jessica Yates and Daniel Plowden were appointed for three-year terms.
Select board member Paul Yates asked the public present at the April 1 meeting if there would be an issue if he voted to approve the appointments, as Jessica Yates is his daughter.
“If it’s a conflict of interest, I’m not going to accept that, because since I’ve been on the board, I never have abstained from anything. I’m not going to start doing it now,” Yates said. “Why I’m saying this is if you can’t trust me for what I am, then you just can’t trust me.”
The public present said they had no objections to Yates voting, which Yates said he felt was not a conflict of interest. The nominations were accepted unanimously by the select board.
The next select board meeting will be at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 14 at the town office. For more information, call 563-5270 or go to bristolmaine.org.
