LISBON — The Town Council voted 6-0 Monday night to deny an appeal of a petition that called for a special town meeting to override the council’s May 19 school budget vote.
According to a statement from the town’s lawyer, Donald Stockford, the Clerk’s Certificate that denied the petition stated it was insufficient because the school budget has not been legally adopted and the petition does not comply with the charter requirement that it be filed within 15 days after the school budget is legally adopted.
The school budget will go to voters Tuesday.
The Clerk’s Certificate also stated that a special town meeting to consider a school budget would not be consistent with Maine law and the town charter, which requires that the budget be approved by the Town Council and validated at a voter referendum, Stockford’s statement said.
A group of residents who wanted more money in the budget for 2015-16 filed the petition with the town clerk last week to request that the council hold a special town meeting. The petition had 636 signatures.
The clerk denied the petition and the group filed an appeal Monday at around 3 p.m. The council called a special meeting Monday evening to consider it, Council Chairman Dillon Pesce said.
Last year, 1,918 of the town’s 6,425 registered voters approved the school budget, 1,245 to 623. There were 50 blank ballots.
In 2009, voters did not approve the school budget, with 421 total ballots cast. There were 6,886 registered voters that year. Asked if the budget was too high or too low, 232 voters said it was too high; 11 said it was too low.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
