Blackstone-Millville committee certifies FY2022–23 budget, approves town assessments and related warrant items

The Blackstone-Millville Regional School Committee on March 24 certified a $28,661,304 gross operating budget for the 2022–23 school year and approved a set of related assessments and warrant articles to be placed before the member towns.

The committee moved and seconded the budget certification, which was read into the record and approved by voice vote. School officials also applied reimbursements totaling $12,219,110 — including Chapter 70 aid, regional transportation, school choice tuition and charter reimbursements — which reduce the district’s net appropriation.

Why it matters: The motions set the required assessments to each member town and the reporting format the district will use for Department of Revenue calculations of excess and deficiency. The committee’s decisions determine how much each town will be asked to contribute and how certain liabilities will be financed going forward.

Votes at a glance (as recorded in the meeting):
- Adopt gross operating budget for FY2022–23, $28,661,304 — motion moved and seconded, approved by voice vote.
- Apply reimbursements (Chapter 70 $11,084,329; regional transportation $664,881; school choice $231,693; charter reimbursement $238,207; total $12,219,110) — approved by voice vote.
- Assessments to towns: Blackstone $10,164,497 (including $7,525,714 minimum contribution) and Millville $3,272,540 — both approved by voice vote.
- Applied other revenue sources totaling $596,000 to the operating budget — approved by voice vote.
- Adopted capital and interest budgets (Blackstone assessment $530,657; Millville assessment $191,762) with itemized project amounts — both approved by voice vote.
- Certified the alternate presentation of the total budget (for Department of Revenue use) — approved by voice vote.

The committee also approved a warrant article to deposit $100,000 into the district’s OPEB (other post-employment benefits) trust fund as a separate town-meeting article for each member town. The payment is to be split 75.666% ($75,666) from Blackstone and 24.334% ($24,334) from Millville; the motion notes the regional agreement must be amended to treat OPEB as an exclusionary cost in future budgets.

Another motion sent to town warrants would authorize annual compensation for committee members ($1,500 per regular member and $1,800 for the chair). Both warrant items were approved by voice vote to be included on each town’s annual meeting warrant.

Officials noted the motions were routine in form but carry fiscal consequences: the assessments set the amount each town must raise and the OPEB warrant starts a process to address retiree health liabilities. The committee indicated it will follow towns’ decisions at their respective annual meetings, and the district will return to normal budgeting procedures when the regional agreement is updated to include OPEB as an exclusionary cost.

The committee closed its public business and adjourned to executive session without returning to the public meeting.