North Andover committee hears three FY26 budget scenarios; guidance budget would trigger deep cuts

Interim Superintendent Pam Lathrop presented three scenarios for the North Andover Public Schools’ proposed fiscal 2026 budget at the Jan. 21 School Committee meeting: a level‑service budget of $71,784,091, a guidance budget aligned to the town manager’s allocation that creates a roughly $6,925,178 shortfall relative to level service, and an alternative plan that reduces the level‑service total by $4,179,129 to limit but not eliminate program and staff reductions.

The presentation matters because the guidance budget would force reductions across the district, Lathrop said, while the alternative would preserve more student‑facing staff and reserves. "The vast majority of our school's general fund is spent on salaries, approximately 83 percent," Lathrop said, summarizing why level service is much larger than some residents expect. She said the district also relied on one‑time federal ESSER funds that have expired and left recurring salary costs in the general fund.

Committee member John Moskovich framed the townwide context in a longer explanation of local tax limits and Proposition 2½, saying voters set a constraint that affects how much the town can raise without a ballot override. "Prop 2½ provided that total local taxes would grow every year at 2½ percent," Moskovich said, urging committee members to consider the town meeting path for any additional funding rather than a straight override vote.

Lathrop walked the committee through the specific…