Raymond withdrawal advocates say voter approval? of the school board’s tax reapportionment plan may avert ?an RSU? 14 divorce.

If Regional School Unit 14 voters approve a proposed cost-sharing formula later this month, the leading advocate for Raymond’s withdrawal from the school district may cut back on her crusade for district dissolution.

Last year, Teresa Sadak, a member of the Raymond Board of Selectmen, pioneered the drive to withdraw from the school district that resulted in a decisive November town vote to initiate the withdrawal process. Now, Sadak, a member of the town’s newly formed, four-person withdrawal committee, says her zeal for reform may fade if voters approve a proposed cost-sharing formula at a March 25 vote at Windham High School.

On Jan. 7, the Windham-Raymond school board unanimously recommended a new cost-sharing formula based on town property valuations that would increase taxes for Windham residents and reduce Raymond’s burden. The proposed formula would also change the way the district funds capital improvements, such as renovations and new school construction.

Concerns about Raymond’s contribution to a proposed new middle school in Windham provoked Sadak’s effort to begin the withdrawal process from the district. If the new formula is approved and the district builds a proposed new middle school strictly for Windham students, Raymond taxpayers would not fund the project.

Asked if she still supports withdrawal, Sadak said she would “be OK either way.” The school board, she said, is moving in the right direction, particularly when it comes to the proposed cost-sharing formula.

“I’ve seen a lot of changes,” Sadak said. “I think I want to reserve my judgment. I think they’re good changes. They’re willing to work on it and that’s huge.”

“Honestly, if this vote goes through – crossing my fingers – I got two huge things that I wanted, and that’s us not paying for a new school and cost-sharing,” Sadak added.

Yet, according to Sadak, the withdrawal campaign has “taken on a life of its own.”

On Nov. 4, Raymond residents voted 1,324-940 to authorize town officials to send a petition for withdrawal to the RSU 14 Board of Directors and the commissioner of the Maine Department of Education. The only way to prematurely end the withdrawal campaign is by town vote.

Sadak posted news of the board’s proposed cost-sharing formula changes Dec. 5, on the Facebook group, “Dissolution of RSU 14,” an online hotbed of pro-withdrawal sentiment.

“It’s still not enough, despite the questionable timing,” wrote one commenter.

“Too little, too late, perhaps,” wrote another.

Sadak urged members of the Facebook group Jan. 24 to vote for the cost-sharing formula, in case withdrawal does not occur.

“Because we are still a consolidated school unit, it is good to pass this because if the vote fails to withdraw from the RSU, then we want our tax dollars to go down and not pay for a new middle school,” Sadak said.

The new formula would not affect the school assessments that are determined by the state’s Essential Services and Programs formula – or about 85 percent of this year’s $25.52 million budget. It would affect the remaining 15 percent, or about $3.7 million. While the existing cost-sharing formula has Windham residents paying a little more than 55 percent of the locally controlled expenses, the new budget would increase Windham’s share to 64 percent. Raymond’s share would dip from about 45 to 36 percent.

Assuming that expenses and incomes remain at current levels in coming years, district administrators estimate that a $250,000 home in Windham would see a $51 tax increase as a result of the new formula. School taxes on a $250,000 home in Raymond would decline $90, according to the projection. If approved by voters at a district-wide meeting in the spring, the tax modifications would be phased in during a three-year period, starting in fiscal year 2016.

The existing cost-sharing formula was set forth in the 2008 Reorganization Plan, when the district was consolidated. It calculated the cost-sharing formula based on an average of each town’s local-only funding – funding not dictated by the state’s mandated contribution – in the three years prior to consolidation.

Starting in fiscal year 2019, the proposed cost-sharing formula would be based on a ratio determined by averages of each town’s property valuation for the previous three years. During the 2012-2013 school year, the state valued Windham at $1.7 billion, while it valued Raymond at $1 billion. When combined, the ratio breaks down to 64:36, which is the ratio used in the proposed cost-sharing formula. If approved, the cost-sharing formula would shift to 58:42 in fiscal 2016. The next year, it would change to 61:39. In fiscal year 2018, the transition to the new cost-sharing regime would be complete.

According to Sadak, the withdrawal committee will crunch the numbers on the cost of district dissolution and release them to the public before any vote is potentially held on curtailing the withdrawal process. Chairman Joe Bruno said the committee would decide on its next moves following the upcoming vote on the cost-sharing formula.

“We’re waiting for the vote on the 25th and then we’ll have a discussion on the 26th on where we’ll go from here,” Bruno said. “We’re hoping for a positive vote and then we’ll evaluate where we are and go from there.”

Based on conversations with Raymond residents, Windham’s Marge Govoni, the chairwoman of the school board, believes separatist sentiment will likely fade if the cost-sharing proposal passes.

“We think that’s the general feeling up there,” said Govoni. “But I learned a long time ago – never assume anything, because you just never know. We’ll proceed as planned and we’ll just see what happens.”

A final public hearing on the cost-sharing formula will be held on Wednesday, March 18, at 5:30 p.m. at the Windham High School auditorium. The district vote will be held on Wednesday, March 25, at 5:30 p.m. in the high school’s auditorium.