Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Transportation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Rockport to shift fuel, vehicle and transportation expenses to town; committee seeks details
Summary
The superintendent and chair explained a plan to move fuel, power and transportation vehicle costs to the town’s Department of Public Works to realize procurement efficiencies; committee members pressed for details about bus procurement and operational coordination.
During the FY27 budget discussion, committee members heard a proposal to move school-department fuel and vehicle expenses — including bus fuel and maintenance — under the town’s Department of Public Works. Chair Amy Oakes summarized the change and asked for clarity about what the town would manage and what the district would retain.
"We're going to shift the cost of transportation, fuel, energy, supplies back over to the town so that the town will do our bidding for oil, oversee electricity, floor wax, paint, cleaning supplies," Oakes said as she described the practical elements of the proposal. Superintendent Mark Branca clarified district supply lines will remain under the director of buildings and grounds; the town would assume fuel, power and vehicle expenses (including school buses and pickup trucks).
Committee members raised practical questions about how the town would source replacement buses and how communication between DPW and school maintenance would work. A staff speaker noted centralizing bidding and procurement "frees Kirk up" from reviewing every contract and can create a single point for bid processing. The committee did not adopt a separate vote on the administration change tonight; members asked staff to provide more details in the full budget book and in follow-up conversations with town leadership.
