Paris School residents reject board’s proposed budget at annual meeting

Residents attending the Paris School District annual meeting Monday took the rare step of rejecting the board’s proposed budget.

Instead, a motion asking the board to lop $326,000 from the tax levy did pass.

At school district annual meetings, district residents are able to vote on a proposed budget and other motions made from the floor. At that meeting, School Board members vote as district residents along with any others that are present.

After the budget failed to pass, district resident Tom Werth made the motion to drop the $326,000 from the levy. Werth said that amount was beyond what the district needed to operate and was slated to be put in the fund balance, essentially the district’s reserve or savings account.

Because of passage of a referendum in 2009, the district does have authority to levy taxes for the additional amount.

However, Werth contends levying to add to the fund balance was “outside the intent” of the referendum, which he says residents passed to save the school from dissolving and allow it to have a deficit free budget.

Werth said figures presented Monday show the district currently has a fund balance of about $446,872.

“I just felt like that was inappropriate,” Werth said. “I just felt like that was not in keeping with the spirit of the referendum.”

Werth said he did not  rally support for his motion beforehand.

The next move will be the School Board’s. At their next meeting, they will have to certify a tax levy, which could be the amount they originally proposed or any other amount within their levy limits, including the lesser amount represented in Werth’s motion.

Note: My attempts today to reach board President Leslie Holloway and district administrator Roger Gahart were unsuccessful, but I left messages and I will keep trying. — DH

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2 Comments

  1. Xfactor says:

    I am curious as to what the Foundation (Werth) has done to secure additional funds to support the school for the long term. Maybe we could donate our tax savings to the foundation and then write it off on our taxes in order to build the fund balance or pay off debt?????

  2. taxpayer says:

    Talk to the Town!!! I’m sure the school would pay back a greater amount of interest than what the bank is generating.

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