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Date: 5/4/2023
WILBRAHAM — Amid tensions, the financial leadership from Wilbraham and Hampden met with the School Committee for the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District to hammer out the details on how to fund the schools for the fiscal year 2024.
The School Committee passed the $53.6 FY24 budget on March 16. Despite an assessment of $29.4 million for Wilbraham, the Finance Committee expressed a willingness to limit the town’s portion of the budget to $1 million over FY23’s $27.81 assessment. With the corresponding portion from Hampden included, this resulted in a funding gap of $800,000.
On April 15, Superintendent John Provost released an extensive list of cuts to programs and personnel, as well as an increase to fees and maintenance to be deferred to close the gap.
Then, on April 19, the Wilbraham Finance Committee, Hampden Advisory Board, and boards of selectmen met to hash out how much each party was willing to contribute and what they should ask of the School Committee in return. The Finance Committee agreed to contribute an additional $200,000, bringing their increase over last year to $1.2 million. The understanding at that time was that, in combination with Hampden’s assessment and about $450,000 of additional Chapter 71 transportation reimbursement, this would close the gap.
HWRSD Assistant Superintendent for Finance, Operations and Human Resources Aaron Osborne explained at the April 24 meeting that when making the budget, the extra funding was “baked in” because the initial estimates for transportation reimbursement were low. In other words, that money is already incorporated into the budget and would not close the gap.
Osborne later explained to Reminder Publishing that the state House Ways & Means Committee recently passed its iteration of the state budget which would increase the district’s Chapter 70 state aid by approximately $80,000. This is expected to be incorporated into the final state budget.
“[Provost] also shared that due to recent transfers from Green Meadows School to Wilbraham Middle School, there may be [about $60,000 in] efficiency savings.” This brought the remaining gap to $460,000.
School Committee member Bill Bontempi suggested the Finance Committee raise their funding increase from $1.2 million to $1.3 million. In turn, the school district would use an additional $200,000 from its Excess and Deficiency Fund and “find” $80,000 in additional efficiency cuts.
Osborne noted that there is $650,000 left in excess and deficiency after the $850,000 that was added to the FY24 budget. He expressed the concern that if nothing is left over to be added back into the account at the end of this year, there will be little to no money left to cushion the budget in future years.
Wilbraham Finance Committee member Mark Ducey said that, in his opinion, $1.2 million is “at the end of our rope.” He brought up the closure of Thornton W Burgess school. Ducey said that he was “trying to force efficiency improvements,” and said, “I think the Finance Committee believes there is opportunities to streamline.”
Bontempi acknowledged, “you are not wrong,” and said that there are efficiency cuts that could be made. He then commented, “Our budgets are essentially the same,” and added that the town could also make efficiency cuts. This resulted in upset and outrage from the Finance Committee and other Wilbraham leadership.
“As offended as you are right now, we’re feeling the same thing when you said it to us,” School Committee member Sean Kennedy told them. Bontempi apologized for the comment and said that the district had begun the budget process with an almost 10% increase and had come down to a 4% increase by making efficiency cuts.
Ducey said that the process was flawed. He pointed out that the cuts had not been discussed at any district Finance Subcommittee meetings. School Committee member Maura Ryan agreed and said towns were caught off guard.
Bontempi responded that the Finance Subcommittee had spent the months of January through March trying to reduce the budget to accommodate the $1,000,000 figure that the Finance Committee had given as a “placeholder.”
Finance Committee member Todd Schneider said that the $1 million placeholder was 20% higher than what is provided in a normal year. Due to this higher funding, he said roads and sidewalks in town were underfunded for the FY24 budget.
Finance Committee member Jeff Farnsworth said he was concerned that if the Finance Committee agreed to the $1.3 million increase it would become the new baseline for future fiscal years.
Capital Expenses
Another sticking point in negotiating the budget was the inclusion of $300,000 in capital expenses for Minnechaug Regional High School that was included in the town assessment letters.
Bontempi said that according to Massachusetts state law, capital projects are required to be included in the assessment, but members of the Finance Committee and Advisory Board disagreed.
“They’ve never been part of the assessment letter in the past. Capital items are one-time expenses,” Hampden Advisory Board Co-Chair Carol Fitzgerald said.
Bontempi began to reiterate, “According to the law ...”
Ducey interjected, “I’ve got the law right in front of me. It doesn’t say that.” And then read the section of state law that regulates regional school district budgets and apportionment of expenses. Bontempi then read from the Code of Massachusetts Regulations, which stipulates that capital costs be included in the assessment.
In the past, “we haven’t had any capital expenses because it was a brand-new school,” Bontempi said of Minnechaug Regional High School.
Advisory Board Co-Chair Doug Boyd said that everyone at the table was “trying to achieve a result everyone can live with.” He added that this was “not the year” to include capital assessments because of the operational budget increases.
Boyd went on to say that the items on the capital expense report were “not that urgent.” However Bontempi said there had been two instances involving the railing on the second floor of the high school, replacement of which is one of the capital expenses.
Finance Committee member Joseph Lawless asked if money from the Excess and Deficiency Account could go toward the railing.
“With the possibility in the fall that the town may reimburse us for that expense?” Kennedy asked.
Lawless asked, “What do you mean by reimburse?” He said Excess and Deficiency funds had been appropriated in the past and was “the town’s money.” Ducey agreed that he was not comfortable reimbursing the district for those funds.
Farnsworth asked the School Committee, “If it’s an emergency why wouldn’t you spend the money you have to do it?”
Bontempi said excessive deficiency account is a “shield,” so that the district does not have to go back to the towns when there is an emergency.
Ryan noted that the capital expenses could be addressed at the fall Town Meetings, but Osborne said that capital expenses are summer projects, and they will have to be done next year if they are funded in the fall.
Finance Committee chair Kevin Hanks commented, “an all or nothing approach is a non-starter what’s up” for capital expenses.
Schneider commented that there was roughly $400,000 in the Minnechaug Regional High School Stabilization Fund. Bontempi said that the district was working on a policy to govern how the stabilization fund was used. He said the district has tried in the past to allocate $50,000 per year to the fund but depending on the budget that goal has not always been met.
“I’m worried that if all of this is in here,” the budget will not pass. If there are multiple Town Meetings, she said it will confuse people. She asked to remove capital expenses from the assessment, use school district funds for what items it can and ask for remaining priority have all expenses at the fall Town Meeting.
Bontempi then suggested taking money for the railings and the installation of mini split air conditioning units from Minnechaug Stabilization Fund.
Controlling costs
Moving the conversation back to the operational budget, Wilbraham Board of Selectman member Theresa Goodrich said people in town are asking, “Why are we going to need more money for less students?” and “Why are the cuts student-facing?” She noted that 40% of the district’s budget is in out-of-classroom costs. Kennedy told her that a substantial portion of that is unfunded mandates and contracted salary increases. Bontempi agreed saying that 95% of the increases to the budget are mandated. He said last year the gap has been increasing from $1 million in FY21 to $1.3 million in FY22 and $1.5 million last year.
Lawless commented that the School Committee controls labor costs. “If we don’t reduce operation costs, we’re heading down a cliff.” Ryan pointed out that insurance costs are mandated and not something within the district’s control.
“There’s a number of things that we can’t control,” Bontempi said, noting salary costs are only $1.5 million of the total $53.6 million budget.
Provost said that with a $1.2 million increase from Wilbraham and the corresponding assessment rate in Hampden, some cuts could be eliminated. He would prioritize the Spanish program for students below eighth grade, early learner educators and bringing back elementary teachers and some paraprofessionals.
Hanks asked for a verbal commitment from the School Committee that all the cuts would be eliminated if the Finance Committee was willing to increase the amount to $1.3 million over last year’s assessment.
Provost responded, “We could substantially ease,” the cuts.
The Finance Committee approved an assessment of $30.7 million. Hampden’s corresponding assessment is $8.94 million. The district agreed to put $1.05 million from the Excess and Deficiency Fund toward the budget, while making $80,000 in efficiency cuts.
Osborne later told Reminder Publishing that the agreement should close the budget gap. “It would be premature to recall any pink slips just yet as the budget remains to be passed by both towns,” he added.
Hampden’s Town Meeting is May 8 and Wilbraham will conduct its Town Meeting on May 15.