RSU 39 board approves capital transfer for track, adopts bond language for Caribou Tech Center ballot

The RSU 39 school board voted to transfer capital-reserve funds to support Caribou High School's track upgrades and approved the language for a bond referendum that will appear on the Nov. 5 ballot.

At agenda item 6.1, the board approved moving $115,110 (presented as a $115,000 transfer request) from the district's capital reserve to the general fund to complete the Caribou High School track project. The chair opened the item, a member moved and a second was heard; the motion carried by voice vote.

At agenda item 6.2 the board considered the proposed official ballot language for a referendum authorizing bonds or notes "in an amount not to exceed $1,630,279.31 to acquire advanced industry standard equipment to modernize various programs at the Caribou Regional Technical Center and train students for careers in high-demand fields." A board member read the motion aloud including a statement that "debt service on the bonds or notes shall be paid by the state of Maine with no impact on local educational taxes." The language was seconded and the motion carried by voice vote. The chair said the board will provide more information at its Sept. 18 meeting.

Neither vote included a roll-call tally in the record; the transcript records the results as voice votes with the chair declaring each motion carried.

What happens next: the funding transfer for the track will be implemented per district financial procedures, and the bond language approved by the board will be placed on the official ballot for voters on Nov. 5. The board indicated it will return Sept. 18 with additional details about the referendum.