Business manager: ED279 shows small enrollment shift, state formula up about 3.5%

Marshwood’s finance presenter, Mr. Cormier, walked the board through the ED279 subsidy document and the numbers that will frame the district’s budget work.

"It looks like we shrank about 30 students," Mr. Cormier said, noting the change is concentrated in pre‑K (reported in the document as a drop from 234 to 205 in pre‑K attending counts). He emphasized these were largely out‑of‑district pre‑K attendees who returned to their home districts as other nearby programs opened.

Mr. Cormier explained the state’s approach to calculating funding: the state multiplies subsidizable enrollment by per‑pupil dollar amounts derived from the Essential Programs and Services (EPS) formula. He said the state’s calculated cost to run the schools is roughly $1 million higher than last year — about a 3.5% increase — and pointed to small increases (3–4%) in per‑student allocations for many categories. He also noted the high‑cost out‑of‑district allocation decreased while the special‑education allocation increased by roughly $500,000 based on current student counts.

Board members discussed valuation effects and how town valuations affect the distribution of local share; Mr. Cormier reiterated that the mill rate is the final lever used to reconcile what the state expects to spend with local decisions.

Board and staff confirmed the district budget meeting is set for May 11, and the superintendent’s proposed budget presentation will occur March 11 as part of the district’s budget schedule.

No budget votes were taken at the meeting; the briefing was presented to inform upcoming workshops and budget deliberations.