RUMFORD — The majority of voters in five of the seven towns of Regional School Unit 10 passed the $29.4 million budget for 2020-21. The total vote Tuesday was 1,458-997.
Results were: Buckfield, 193-165; Hanover, 42-43; Mexico, 242-122; Roxbury, 42-30; Rumford, 721-373; Sumner, 109-159; and Hartford, 109-105.
The budget is about $1.5 million more than last year, or a 5.53% increase.
Assessments for Buckfield, Mexico, Rumford and Sumner would drop under the proposal, while Hanover, Hartford and Roxbury taxpayers would see increases. The average assessments in the seven towns is 1.36% less than last year.
“I am so appreciative and relieved for our students, that it appears our budget has passed,” Superintendent Deb Alden wrote in an email Wednesday. “I do heed the comments and concerns from the smaller towns throughout our district and all of our taxpayers; these are not taken lightly.
“As we move forward to get our students and staff back into our schools safely, we will carefully monitor our resources,” she said.
“Thank you to everyone who exercised their right to vote!” she added.
Early in June, the RSU 10 board of directors received feedback from Hartford and Sumner selectmen, who requested directors to “take another serious look at its prepandemic proposed budget and reduce it to keep the budget at the 2019-2020 level, except for contract considerations.”
At a budget hearing at the end of June, Alden said negative impacts on the budget included maintenance on seven aging buildings to educate about 1,800 students and cost increases, such as class instruction, capital improvement, and students’ social-emotional-mental health.
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