The Regional School Unit 5 Board of Directors got its first look Tuesday at the district’s proposed $25.6 million budget for 2013-2014.

The proposed budget is a 2.6 percent increase over current expenditures and would require its member towns to pay nearly $650,000 more.

Residents of Durham, at 7.8 percent, and Pownal, at 6.2 percent, would shoulder the majority of the local tax increases compared to 1.7 percent for Freeport.

RSU 5 Superintedent Shannon Welsh attributed the increases Tuesday to Gov. Paul LePage’s intent to shift teacher retirement costs to municipalities, and to proliferation of charter schools.

Initial estimates are that as many as 15 students will leave RSU 5 for charter schools, which would translate into a reduction of about $115,000 in state funding.

“Just because you’re losing, say, 10 students over a wide range of grades, you’re not going to cut a teacher’s position,” School Board Chairman Nelson Larkins said.

Likewise, the proposed retirement cost shift — estimated at $188,000 — is not factored into the proposed budget because it is not yet a certainty.

“The initial reaction is that nobody wants to see (the budget) go up, but it’s significatly less an what we’re seing from neighboring communities,” Larkins said. “If you take out the set increases — wages and salaries that we’e already agreed to — it’s almost a $100,000 reduction from this year.”

Board members will take public comment during their regular meeting tonight at 6:30 pm. at Freeport High School.

jtleonard@timesrecord.com