Appropriations Committee hears Algonquin FY27 budget: $31.4 million recommended; Northborough assessment to rise

The Appropriations Committee of the Town of Northborough reviewed the Algonquin Regional School District’s recommended FY27 budget of $31,416,287, a $2,071,974 increase from FY26 that Superintendent Greg said equates to a 5.81% rise.

“We are at a recommended budget of $31,416,287,” Superintendent Greg said, adding the district has continued to tighten line items and that 34 of 58 line items show either no increase or a decrease. He said four areas—out‑of‑district special education, health insurance, transportation and certain contractual obligations—represent roughly 60% of the proposed increase.

The recommendation is framed as a level‑services budget that preserves classroom instruction while reducing staff. Greg said the district plans to apply circuit‑breaker reimbursements (he described the amount as a little under $725,000) and will reduce roughly 12.5 full‑time equivalent positions across preK–12 (5.5 regional FTEs plus seven FTEs in Northborough’s preK–8 budget).

“Those larger increases are largely concentrated in areas where the district has less flexibility, such as contractual obligations, transportation, and certain operational expenses,” Greg said, noting that special‑education placements and specialized services are largely driven by individual student needs and state requirements.

Becky, a school official who presented capital needs, said the district identified six capital projects totaling $477,000 and that Northborough’s share of those projects would be $292,210 based on a four‑year October 1 enrollment average. “The building is aging,” Becky said, and the committee discussed the school committee’s plan to smooth capital assessments over time rather than requiring infrequent large investments.

Jason Little, the town finance director, gave a townwide context: town budgets are projecting about a 2.9% increase overall, and he flagged a remaining operating gap for town budgets of approximately $633,000. He said the Select Board voted to allow roughly $700,000 additional free cash toward the operating budget; those levers plus OPEB, local receipts and potential trash‑bag fee adjustments are among the options being considered to close the gap.

On apportionment, Greg walked committee members through the Chapter 70 funding formula components and said the school committee voted to use $675,000 of excess and deficiency to reduce the FY27 assessment on the towns. Without that E&D amount, Greg said, the assessment would have been about 8.68%; with the E&D applied the FY27 assessment impact for Northborough is about a 5.191% increase.

Committee members pressed for clearer public explanations of circuit breaker funding and for more early, joint meetings among the school committee, appropriations and financial planning bodies to align timing and messaging. One member asked whether the current spike in special‑education costs would be mitigated by circuit‑breaker reimbursements in FY28; Greg said the district had modeled trends and expects some mitigation but noted out‑of‑district placements for students arriving with significant needs could change projections.

The committee also approved routine business items during the meeting. George Brinkle moved to approve the February minutes and the motion was seconded; Terry Halloran said he would abstain because he was not present at that prior meeting. Later the committee voted to adjourn.

The committee scheduled follow‑up work: a financial update Tuesday the 10th, a working meeting Wednesday the 18th to begin drafting the committee’s report and review warrant articles, and participation in a joint budget hearing the week of March 20 to gather public input and finalize recommendations.

The Appropriations Committee did not take any final binding votes on the district’s budget at this meeting; presenters said the school committee’s recommended budget and the assessment apportionment will be part of the town’s upcoming warrant and town meeting process.