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FiPAC approves $250,000 in cuts split between schools, selectmen and reserves
Summary
After a public hearing with dozens of residents urging protection of school programs, Columbia FiPAC voted 5-1 to apply $250,000 in reductions split $100,000 to the Board of Education, $100,000 to the Board of Selectmen and $50,000 from the undesignated fund; the amended budget goes to a Town Meeting June 23 and a referendum June 30.
The Financial Planning and Allocation Commission on Wednesday approved a $250,000 reduction to the proposed 2026–27 budget, splitting the cut across the Board of Education, the Board of Selectmen and town reserves.
Art Rowbotham moved to take $100,000 from the Board of Education, $100,000 from the Board of Selectmen and $50,000 from the undesignated fund; the motion passed 5-1 with Commissioner Kelley Peck opposed. The commission then voted to send the revised budget to the Town Budget Meeting on June 23 and the Budget Referendum on June 30.
Chair Judith Jordan reviewed the history of cuts leading up to the hearing, noting earlier BOS reductions of $610,000 from capital and $200,000 from operating and that the BOE had cut $625,000 to date with a further $250,000 under consideration. Jordan later cautioned voters about procedural limits: "If you vote no, the only thing FiPAC can do is keep the presented budget or reduce it," she said, noting the charter restricts restoring items eliminated by FiPAC.
The vote followed more than an hour of public comment in which residents and school community members urged the commission not to reduce school funding further, citing concerns about special education, extracurricular programs and class sizes. Commissioners described the split as an effort to balance the referendum concerns with the public input.
The commission recorded the motion to send the amended budget forward; minutes show the split-cut motion as the final recommendation that will be presented at the Town Meeting and on the referendum ballot.
