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Commissioners cut parts of Board of Education request, but approve majority of proposed increases
Summary
After debate, the commissioners trimmed $3.69 million from the Board of Education’s request and approved a reduced increase; the board and superintendent defended requested pay and program restorations tied to student services and state mandates.
Worcester County commissioners on May 13 debated and then reduced portions of the Board of Education’s FY26 request, approving a smaller county appropriation than the school system sought.
Superintendent Vince Taylor and other board representatives urged commissioners to fund a package that included teacher pay increases and restorations of programs and instructional materials that had previously been cut. Taylor said the school system negotiated a flat-dollar approach to raises this year—$4,000 for certified teachers and $2,000 for support staff—after being advised that a percentage COLA would have cost more overall. He said the county needed to raise starting teacher pay toward a $60,000 statewide target by FY27.
Commissioner Bunning moved, and the board later approved, a motion to reduce the Board of Education’s proposed increase by striking the board’s “restored cuts” line (about $1.94 million) and replacing the proposed $4,000-per-teacher increase with a $2,000-per-teacher planning figure. The motion was seconded; commissioners recorded a 4–2 vote in favor with one member absent. Budget staff estimated the reduction would lower the Board of Education request by roughly $3,693,003 and would result in a year-over-year county increase of approximately $6.48 million for the schools instead of the larger amount previously requested.
Superintendent Taylor and board representatives cautioned that cuts to positions and services in past years had left classroom supports, multilingual services and summer programming strained, and said some line items, if funded this year, would not recur in next year’s request (for example, one-time device-leasing costs and restoration of previously cut items). Taylor said the proposed approach was intended to move the county toward the state’s $60,000 starting salary target in two steps rather than requiring a larger one‑time COLA.
The discussion included back-and-forth about step schedules, tenure-related step timing and how negotiated salary scales affect starting pay; the board said many counties already pay higher starting salaries. Commissioners who supported reducing the request said the board and administration should continue to find efficiencies and prioritize within the request.
The reduced appropriation direction will be reflected in final budget materials staff prepares for adoption.
