MSAD 15, which covers Gray and New Gloucester, has released an updated proposal after the town rejected the initial budget during last month’s local elections.

The revised budget reduces the spending increase from 5.93% to 4.79%. The total budget in the proposal is $34,900,662, a reduction of $379,636 from the previous budget.

According to a press release, the updated budget will prioritize student needs while aligning spending with demonstrated needs and five-year spending trends. Sam Pfeifle, the newly elected chair of the district’s Finance Committee, said the administration had done an “incredible job” in providing supporting documentation for the proposal, including three-year spending trends by function area and by individual article, and expedited fiscal year 2025 year-end expenditure reports.

“There’s really no way you can argue that administrators haven’t examined every dollar we plan to spend next year,” Pfeifle said in the press release.

The revised budget will maintain added funding for a middle school special education teacher position, bus and van leases to maintain transportation services, cellular-based radios for buses to enhance safety and communication, and transportation software upgrades, among other improvements to facilities and capital projects. The new budget will also carry over reductions from the previous iteration, including the elimination of 1.5 teacher positions at the high school, five educational technician positions, and 0.6 secretary positions, as well as cutting summer programming for general education students.

One of the most notable new budget reductions is the district’s partnership with a private company for paid medical leave, which will save $40,021. According to Superintendent Chandra Turner, effective Jan. 1, 2025, all employers in Maine must contribute 1% of an employee’s salary to a state-run paid family and medical leave program. However, as benefits will not begin until May of next year, the district has moved to opt out of the state program, instead working with a private insurance provider, Guardian. Turner told Lakes Region Now that Guardian offers the same services while collecting just 0.95% of employee salaries, and will not start collecting until 2026.

Other new reductions include $26,083 in co-curricular/athletic spending, $57,708 in health insurance to align with spending, $36,629 in bond interest payments, and a $200,000 reduction for out-of-district placement. Turner said the latter is because of the costs of paying for a student who needs to be sent outside of the district, with just one child often costing upward of $100,000.

Board Chair Penny Collins said she was impressed with the amount of public engagement as the board returned to the budget process. In the press release, she said she was thankful for the support of local community members, who she said had both attended in-person meetings and reached out in writing to “emphasize their wish for budget changes to have minimal impact on students and programming.”

“I believe this revised budget reflects our commitment to fiscal responsibility while maintaining our focus on student achievement,” said Turner.

The revised budget will be presented to the full board for consideration on Wednesday, July 16, at a public meeting to be held at the Gray-New Gloucester High School cafeteria. Community members are encouraged to attend and participate in the public comment period. The public can also share their thoughts by emailing individual board members or the full board at schoolboard@sad15.org.