Easton committee approves PACE community compact alongside town budget warning

The Easton School Committee voted unanimously Thursday to approve a community compact developed by the Promoting a Sustainable Easton (PACE) committee, a document PACE framed as a companion set of commitments should voters approve a proposed operational override.

The compact, presented by PACE members Tom Broussard and Nancy Donahue, would bind the town and schools to a set of fiscal and policy commitments intended to limit future operating growth and encourage measured economic development. "Be curious, don't be judgmental," Broussard told committee members as he urged residents to study the town's budget challenges and engage in local meetings.

PACE described a long-running structural revenue problem for Easton, saying the town is constrained by Proposition 2 1/2 and receives less in state aid than large cities. Broussard and Donahue told the committee the PACE group settled on a revenue recommendation after nine months of meetings and public outreach. The committee presented two headline figures: a recommended operational override figure discussed in meetings of roughly $7.3 million, and a broader "total challenge" estimate the PACE group said was about $8.1 million over multiple years to stabilize operations.

Th…