MSAD 51 proposes $50.25 million FY25 budget; board approves warrants, sets May 9 budget meeting and June 11 referendum

Superintendent Jeff Porter presented the Maine School Administrative District 51 recommended fiscal year 2024–25 budget on April 22, proposing a $50,250,107 gross budget and asking voters to approve a district budget meeting on May 9 and a budget validation referendum on June 11.

Porter said two substantive adjustments were made since the March 4 proposal: employee health insurance costs came in higher than the 7 percent originally budgeted (actuals showed an 8.6 percent increase, adding about $93,000) and he recommended restoring a second full‑time high‑school physical education position to avoid summer credit‑recovery gaps for students. He described $212,000 in new proposals included in the recommended budget and about $1,360,000 in additional proposals that were not advanced into the proposed budget.

“Total budget that we’re proposing tonight is $50,250,107,” Porter said, presenting line items and regional comparisons. He noted the district will receive roughly $1 million more in state subsidy next year and that salary and benefits account for about 81 percent of the proposed budget.

Porter and staff walked the board through out‑of‑general‑fund items: roughly $117,000 in ESSA federal funds (Title I A, Title II A and Title IV) and about $511,000 in local entitlement funding for special education. He explained that contingency and capital reserves are funded from undesignated fund balances and do not, by themselves, increase the tax rate.

Board members pressed for details on local tax impacts and enrollment. Porter reported the forecasted tax effect for Cumberland is a 3.98 percent increase (about $0.88 per $100,000 of assessed value) and for North Yarmouth a 3.13 percent increase (about $0.60 per $100,000). Board members also noted an enrollment increase of about 50 students (roughly a 3 percent rise), modular lease costs carried into the budget (about $300,000), and several deferred capital projects included as summer work—items such as a high‑school stage door replacement, pool area safety improvements, and a retaining wall repair.

The board approved a motion to approve and sign the warrant and notice of election and to call the district budget meeting for May 9 at 7 p.m. (Arts Center) and a budget validation referendum for June 11. The motion was seconded and approved; the chair announced the vote as unanimous.

What’s next: the board, staff and community engagement committee will continue a public series of outreach sessions (including a finance session and a turf/safety session) in May; the district will post finalized mill‑rate impact information on the district School Building Project page before the May events. The budget will be voted by residents at the district budget meeting and then in the June 11 referendum if needed.