Buckfield signs RSU 10 warrant as ad hoc committee advances referendum, possible withdrawal steps

The Town of Buckfield Select Board on May 27 voted to countersign the RSU 10 budget validation referendum warrant for the June 10 vote and heard a report from an ad hoc education exploration committee about district finances and a possible withdrawal process.

The countersignature allows the RSU 10 warrant to be posted for the June 10 validation referendum. The board took the countersignature by motion and voice vote; Marshall seconded the motion and the board approved it unanimously.

Committee chair Neil (listed on the meeting materials as lead of the ad hoc group) told the board the figures residents will consider at the district meeting and on the June ballot will be set at the RSU 10 annual budget meeting the night before the validation referendum. He described two categories of costs in the district budget — “known” costs specifically assigned to schools and “unknown” or systemwide costs such as transportation and utilities that are not broken down by individual buildings — and said the committee used several allocation methods to estimate the town’s share.

Neil provided Buckfield-specific numbers: the state-mandated allocation for Buckfield is $1,115,995 and the additional amount the district is asking the town to raise is $947,394.49, for a total local share of $2,063,389.49. He said that represents an 8.832% increase for Buckfield on the figures used in the committee’s analysis.

The committee outlined next steps should residents want to pursue withdrawal from RSU 10: the first step would be petitions in each of the three member towns (Buckfield, Sumner and Hartford). ‘‘At some point, we’re gonna need to start a petition,’’ Neil said, adding that all three towns must pass the petition for the withdrawal process to proceed. If all three petitions pass, the group would recommend hiring legal counsel to begin formal withdrawal work; Neil estimated an independent ED279 calculation by the state (the education subsidy reporting form) could cost roughly $40,000 and would likely be required in later steps.

Committee members and board members stressed that the RSU 10 annual budget meeting (where residents can move to change line items) is the only immediate opportunity to affect the dollar amounts that appear on the validation referendum ballot. ‘‘Tomorrow is the only time where we can affect change,’’ Neil said, describing how motions at the district meeting alter individual articles and line items.

Discussion also covered federal and state education funding numbers: the committee used an estimated federal contribution of about $2,500 per pupil and a working pupil count of 507 across the three schools to model revenue; members said a more precise ED279 run for the three-school configuration would produce a definitive state subsidy figure.

The board did not take formal action on withdrawal at the May 27 meeting; the committee said it will ask the board in a future meeting to authorize a petition process in Buckfield if volunteers can be found to gather signatures. The committee posted its supporting documents to a public Google Drive and linked them on the town website and plans public information sessions in Sumner and Hartford.

The discussion closed with the board thanking the committee for its work and encouraging residents to attend the RSU 10 annual budget meeting and the June 10 referendum vote.