School committee approves FY26 operating budget after contentious debate over leads, legal fees, SRO costs and cybersecurity spending

The Fall River School Committee voted on May 12 to approve a proposed fiscal year 2026 operating budget of $198,837,210 after hours of debate and multiple amendment attempts that touched on staffing, outside legal costs and security.

Superintendent Tracy Curley presented the budget and noted it excludes transportation (handled as a separate line). During discussion, committee members raised several contested items:

- Instructional leads: Committee members reminded colleagues that a prior decision called for phasing out stipulated instructional lead positions; members debated whether equivalent leads in operations or maintenance should also be cut. ``We have already decided to cut the instructional leads,'' one member said; others argued for a broader, consistent approach before removing positions. The committee ultimately did not remove the maintenance leads at this meeting after a roll-call vote failed to carry the narrower cut.

- Legal expenses / outside counsel: Members pressed for detailed billing and a written retainer if the district continues to rely on expensive outside counsel. One member proposed pursuing a retainer contract with a particular outside attorney to control costs; another asked the administration to provide a breakdown of past legal spending. The budget includes a placeholder for legal services, and counsel said $200,000 is available in the coming year if needed.

- SRO costs and indirect‑cost agreement: Several members questioned whether School Resource Officer positions and related overtime belong in the school budget or should be city‑funded under the district’s indirect cost agreement with the city; staff said they have budgeted roughly $800,000 for SROs next year and will need to reconcile overtime and contractual increases.

- Cybersecurity contract: The committee approved a contract to upgrade server firmware, rebalance virtual machines, and implement security hardening to address recent incidents. The administration said the work will increase system resilience and improve recovery in future attacks.

Amid those debates, the committee acted on several motions: it voted to table some proposed changes so staff could provide more detail; it approved an amendment to add $750,000 to the transportation line (see separate article); and it ultimately approved the overall FY26 budget. Several members said they supported passage to meet municipal budget deadlines while reserving the right to seek further detail on specific line items.

The committee directed staff to provide additional backup on legal invoicing, to return with analysis of leads and their job descriptions, and for counsel and administration to review the SRO funding framework with the city’s administration before finalizing next‑year expenditures.