RSU13 budget rises 5.23%; South Thomaston told local share will climb about 10.6% (≈$385,000)

Superintendent John McDonald told the South Thomaston Select Board on May 13 that the Regional School Unit 13 budget for 2025–26 would increase overall by 5.23 percent and that the town’s local share is projected to rise about 10.6 percent, roughly $385,000.

McDonald said district assessment of K–8 performance using NWEA testing shows most grades at or slightly above grade level since the COVID pandemic, with one exception (grade seven). “We have nothing to be apologizing for in terms of test scores,” he said, and credited improved behavior metrics and lower suspensions to administrative hires and a school resource officer funded by a Rockland grant.

Business manager Kotti Hunt walked the board through a budget brochure and article-by-article figures. Hunt said health insurance costs rose about 13 percent and that the budget reflects absorption of roughly one-third of remaining COVID-related grant funds. She noted a roughly $700,000 savings this year tied to the state’s pre‑K cohort funding (the DOE cohort for three‑ and four‑year‑olds), which reduced special-education costs for that age group.

Hunt described article-level changes: regular instruction (largely salaries and benefits) is the major driver and increased about 12.1 percent; special education declined due to the pre‑K cohort shift; transportation rose 11.65 percent, including a planned bus purchase; facilities are up about 1.71 percent; and debt service increased because several revolving renovation funds are now coming due.

McDonald also described an ESCO (energy‑savings) project that the district has finalized with an investor that will fund rooftop solar, LED lighting, backup boilers and generators. “It’s also doing solar energy on the roofs of most of the schools which will eliminate most if not all of the electrical costs in the next 12 months,” he said, characterizing the work as investor paid in exchange for tax benefits.

Members and residents asked how the town’s share rose so sharply. Hunt explained the Maine Department of Education’s DE 279 formula: local required contribution uses a 25 percent weight for three‑year average enrollment and 75 percent weight for three‑year average property valuations. “Our values are growing faster than anybody else,” Hunt said, adding that the valuation component pushed South Thomaston’s share up.

Superintendent McDonald reminded residents of the upcoming budget‑vote schedule: the public budget presentation and vote for the towns is May 21 at Oceanside High School at 6 p.m.; the budget‑validation referendum is June 10 at town offices (polls open 8 a.m.–8 p.m.).

What’s next: The board signed the warrant and notice of election for RSU13’s budget validation referendum; several board members asked for more public outreach explaining why valuation changes and factoring do not necessarily raise every individual taxpayer’s bill when the mill rate adjusts.