Region 8 superintendent proposes $34.18 million FY26‑27 budget, flags health‑insurance and special‑education costs

Colin McNamara, superintendent of Regional School District 8, told a joint meeting of the town boards on Feb. 20 that the district’s proposed fiscal‑year 2026–27 budget totals $34,176,011, a 4.77% increase from the current year. The proposal splits into a $33,676,011 net operating budget and a $500,000 capital budget, McNamara said.

McNamara said the operating budget is driven largely by personnel: "73% of our proposed operating budget is allocated to employee salaries and benefits," and health insurance was budgeted at a 15% increase pending final rates in March. He also identified special‑education outplacement tuition as a volatile cost driver, saying the budget reflects roughly a $138,000 increase in outplacement tuition compared with the current year.

The superintendent said the district had already removed about $800,000 of initial requests — cutting personnel, equipment and services, moving some items to leases and eliminating four positions — to narrow what he earlier characterized as a potential 7.42% increase down to the current 4.77% proposal. "In totality, the things that we have removed already from the budget total approximately $800,000," McNamara said.

On capital needs, McNamara described a $500,000 package that includes an urgent loading‑dock replacement he estimated at about $425,000, catch‑basin repairs of about $58,000 and pavement‑marking work of roughly $21,000. He said some work may be handled through vendors on a state bid list rather than a separate RFP and promised to follow up with vendor and bid‑status details.

McNamara described enrollment and levy mechanics for member towns: the town’s levy percentage is calculated from the district’s Oct. 1 enrollment, and he said Andover’s share of Region 8 enrollment is projected at 12.65 for the coming year, down slightly from 12.99. He also discussed new tuition revenue the district expects from Columbia students choosing Ram High School; one slide showed the 10‑student placeholder reflected as $150,729, and he later referenced an anticipated Columbia‑derived revenue figure of $312,764 as enrollment identifications were still being finalized.

The superintendent said the Region 8 board asked him to develop options showing where reductions could be made equal to up to 2% of the proposed increase so the board could evaluate scenarios that would bring the net increase down toward 2.77%. He said he will present prioritized reduction options at the Region 8 board workshop on Feb. 23 and will share related materials by email.

McNamara also outlined longer‑term capital needs requiring bonding, naming roofs, HVAC work, boilers, life‑safety systems and parking as likely future projects. The district is working with an architectural firm (Bridal and Associates) to analyze scope and cost and plans a special board meeting to review potential bond projects.

Why it matters: The regional budget affects member‑town levies and local tax bills. McNamara emphasized that while the district is trimming requests, fixed personnel and benefit costs still make balancing service levels and local taxpayer impact difficult.

What’s next: McNamara said he will supply the board with the Nasdaq (enrollment projection) report and vendor/bid information for the loading‑dock project and will submit reduction scenarios to the Region 8 board on Feb. 23. The town budget process for each member town will reflect the final Region 8 decisions.