School committee backs selectmen's request for MBTA-Communities exemption and will supply fiscal impact data

The Dracut School Committee voted to back a potential town request for an exemption from the MBTA Communities Act and agreed to provide school-department fiscal data to support any application.

Committee member Mr. Shepherd introduced a motion that the school committee send correspondence to the Board of Selectmen to support filing for an exemption from the MBTA Communities Act as an unfunded mandate, and that, if the selectmen move forward, the superintendent provide a school-focused memo summarizing budget line items that could increase under proposed MBTA zoning overlays. "The reason I'm saying this is because the zoning bylaw review committee specifically asked someone to come in front of this school committee and discuss this overlay and discuss this because we have a big stake in this," the mover told the committee.

After discussion the committee passed the motion by voice vote. A member seconded the motion and the clerk recorded: "All those in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries." The committee did not provide a roll-call tally at the meeting.

Committee members said the proposed MBTA overlay could generate housing growth near existing schools and that potential new multifamily development might increase student enrollment and transportation costs. The superintendent said he could estimate anticipated student yield from proposed developments to model costs such as additional teachers and buses; he advised that the state auditor and town would perform their own review but that municipal input would be accepted.

The committee chair asked that any requested memo be limited to school-budget line items and projected student impacts so the Board of Selectmen and the state auditor could use it in their financial analyses. The committee did not adopt zoning policy; it agreed only to provide fiscal information and to support the selectmen's decision to file for an exemption if the selectmen choose to do so.