SAD 45 voters approve emergency budget spending

    WASHBURN, Maine – Human error is being blamed for the financial woes in SAD 45, but following an emergency budget meeting held last Wednesday night at the elementary school, the community is moving forward to correct the problem.
    Interim superintendent David Lyon told the crowd of about 150 people that the over expenditures during the last two fiscal years were caused by problems in revenues and expenditures in the budgetary process.
“There was a $136,000 mistake,” said Lyon. “It was recorded that the district had a balance forward of $185,000, when it was actually $49,000. Special education revenues are $239,000, which is higher than was expected, so that mistake is actually a good thing. When you appropriate $20,000 for the miscellaneous money market that brings our total revenue to $123,000.
“The problem is in expenditures,” he said. “When you add everything together, we have a total deficit of $350,000.”
Figures presented at the meeting show that Ed Tech salaries (not budgeted) is estimated at $39,000, special education services (not budgeted) $309,000, food services budget ($25,000), central office legal ($52,000), interest on line of credit (not budgeted) $12,000, and unknown expenses that may occur ($36,000), for a total of over expenditures of $473,000.
“When you subtract our total revenue – $123,000 – that leaves a $350,000 deficit,” said Lyon. “I’m hopeful some of the $350,000 can be absorbed by not filling some of the positions that have become open.”
Over the last two months, several administrators including the finance director, high school principal and special education director have submitted their resignations. Superintendent Brooke Clenchy tendered her resignation last fall.
After electing Rod Leach as moderator for the meeting, residents were asked at the budget meeting to consider an appropriation of $508,238 for the operation of schools for the 2006-2007 fiscal year, and a $157,321 appropriation for the 2005-2006 fiscal year.
Lyon explained because SAD 45 over spent the authorized amount set by voters at an earlier district budget meeting for 2005-2006, the district needed voter authorization for the over expenditure of $157,321. This would also allow the audit of 2006 to be corrected to reflect the action of the voters on Article 3 of the warrant for the emergency budget meeting.
Voters were also asked to authorize the district to take out a loan not to exceed $350,000 to cover operating costs for 2006-2007.
Lyon told residents that if they didn’t approve both articles, the district would only be allowed to spend $77,000, the remainder of the authorized spending limit of $3,291,762.
“Once that $77,000 is gone,” he said, “bills won’t be paid. There won’t be any health benefits, no lights, no fuel, no wages, nothing.”
He further stated that schools would have to close within a week or two because of a lack of spending authorization.
After additional discussion, residents unanimously approved Article 2, which allowed for the $350,000 loan and increased the district’s spending capability. Article 3 had only two dissenting votes.
“You have several new directors and a new interim superintendent, and we’re trying to correct the problem,” said Lyon. “Unfortunately there were two years of mistakes; human error – nothing malicious like embezzlement or misappropriation of funds. The people who have the answers aren’t here.
“My focus will now be on next year’s budget,” he said.
School board chairman Mike McIntosh said in the future the board will ask for more budget reports and “keep a closer eye on the process.”
“We don’t want something like this to happen again,” said McIntosh.
Lyon said the district owes a debt of gratitude to SAD 1, which helped issue payroll and review financial records during SAD 45’s recent difficulties.