In a lopsided decision Wednesday night, Regional School Unit 14 voters approved a new district cost-sharing formula that increases taxes for Windham residents, reduces Raymond’s burden, and changes the way the district funds capital improvements, such as renovations and new school construction.

On Wednesday evening at the Windham High School auditorium, the assembled residents voted 167-22, with one blank vote submitted, to approve the new formula. According to Windham Town Clerk Linda Morrell, 160 Raymond residents and 30 Windham residents participated in the vote.

The vote could lead to the end of Raymond’s campaign for withdrawal from the district, according to Joe Bruno, chairman of the Raymond withdrawal committee.

“From my perspective, we’ll probably make a recommendation to send it out to a vote in June to dissolve the withdrawal committee,” Bruno said. “At this point, now with the new funding formula, this addresses all our concerns as far as building a new middle school, as far as equitable funding for Raymond.”

Last year, Teresa Sadak, a member of the Raymond Board of Selectmen and the withdrawal committee, pioneered the drive to withdraw from the school district that resulted in a decisive November town vote to initiate the withdrawal process. Concerns about Raymond’s contribution to a proposed new middle school in Windham provoked Sadak’s effort to begin the withdrawal process. Under the new formula, if the district builds a proposed new middle school strictly for Windham students, Raymond taxpayers would not fund the project.

Sadak, who described the vote as “very exciting,” said she had not decided yet whether the withdrawal campaign should continue, in light of the results of the vote.

“I’m relieved it’s over, as far as the cost sharing,” Sadak said. “It’s over as far as worrying about having to pay for a new middle school. That’s huge.”

The new formula does 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 affects 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 will eventually increase Windham’s share to 64 percent. Raymond’s share will 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 will see a $51 tax increase as a result of the new formula. School taxes on a $250,000 home in Raymond will decline $90, according to the projection. The tax modifications will be phased in during a three-year period, starting in fiscal year 2016.