Editor’s Note: From Chip Elitzer we received today the following dispatch containing a revised amendment to the Berkshire Hills Regional School District agreement between the towns of Stockbridge, West Stockbridge and Great Barrington.This letter was sent to the BHRSD School Committee. It follows Elitzer’s recommendation that the district establish a different method of assessing its member towns, an approach he termed “Financing our public schools, fully and fairly.” For estimates of how his proposal would affect the assessments of each district town, see his calculations by clicking here.
Dear School Committee:
I have attached (see below) a revised proposed amendment to the District Agreement for your consideration to place on the warrants for the upcoming annual town meetings. The preamble now reads, “As soon as necessary State approvals are secured,” and the effective date is the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2016.
The amendment itself has the same objective as my previous version, but has been substantially rewritten following my conversation on Friday with Massachusetts Association of Regional Schools consultant Steve Hemman, which was facilitated by Peter Dillon’s introduction, and a further conference call today with Steve and Peter. Steve explained to me that our District Agreement has not been updated to reflect changes in state statutes made in 1993, and that without a full review and revision process, any amendment voted on by the towns wouldn’t pass muster with the Massachusetts Department of Education. He also said that the DOE typically doesn’t review District Agreements to make sure they’re current unless an amendment is submitted that causes them to review the agreement.
My point to Steve [Hemman] – and to you – is that the allocation amendment is an essential prerequisite for getting us on a firm financial footing, because without that, all other plans for new initiatives will be much more difficult. Furthermore, the support of the three towns for this amendment will assure us that spending time and money on revising the entire District Agreement would be worthwhile. So let’s get it on the warrants now, build voter awareness of the issue, and see where we stand. If it passes in all three town meetings, then the new language of the amendment will enable the School Committee to undertake the additional steps necessary to bring the rest of the Agreement into compliance with current Massachusetts statutes prior to the start of the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2016. If it doesn’t pass, then at least we will have begun the voter education process.
Chip Elitzer
Great Barrington
Revised proposed amendment:
Proposed procedure for placing this Warrant article before each of the three annual town meetings in May, 2015:
- Approve by School Committee majority vote (ideally, by unanimous vote) at March 19th meeting.
- Submit to Select Boards of the three towns to place on their town meeting Warrant (necessary at least in GB, since the date for citizen warrants has passed, but the Select Board can still add an article directly through next Monday).
SECTION IV APPORTIONMENT AND PAYMENT OF COSTS INCURRED BY THE DISTRICT
As Amended May 21, 1979
(A) Apportionment of Costs
All costs for the fiscal year beginning July 1,1980 and for each fiscal year thereafter shall be apportioned to the member towns on the basis of their respective pupil enrollment in the District. Each member town’s proportionate share of such costs shall be determined by multiplying the amount of the budget adopted by the District pursuant to sub-section V(C) by the ratio that such member town’s pupil enrollment in the District on October 1 of the calendar year next preceding the fiscal year for which the apportionment is determined bears to the total pupil enrollment of all the member towns.
RESOLVED:
As soon as necessary State approvals are secured, replace the “Apportionment of Costs” paragraph (A) above with the following language:
STATUTORY METHOD
Each member town’s share of the operating costs shall be calculated in the following manner subject to all provisions of Massachusetts General Law (MGL) and the Code of Massachusetts Regulation (CMR):
A. Determine the operating budget that does not include transportation, debt, or capital.
B. Subtract Chapter 70 (as calculated from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education).
C. Subtract minimum required local contributions (as calculated from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education) of the member towns.
D. Subtract other general revenue sources to the school district.
E. Calculate the additional assessment above net minimum required local contribution by subtracting A-B-C-D= Excess contribution.
F. Each member town’s proportionate share of the excess contribution shall be determined based on its assessed taxable property value in the regional school district on December 1 of the preceding year for which the apportionment will be assessed.
G. The operating assessment will be the minimum local required contribution plus the excess amount as determined in (F).
ALTERNATE ASSESSED TAXABLE PROPERTY VALUE METHOD TO BE USED BY THE BHRSD BEGINNING WITH THE 2017 FISCAL YEAR
Each member town’s share of the operating and capital costs shall be calculated in the following manner subject to all provisions of Massachusetts General Law (MGL) and the Code of Massachusetts Regulation (CMR):
A. Determine the gross operating budget.
B. Subtract school choice tuition income and regular tuition income.
C. Add the gross capital budget.
D. Subtract Chapter 71 transportation aid.
E. Subtract Chapter 70 (as calculated from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education).
F. Subtract other revenue sources to the school district.
G. Calculate the local contribution by this formula: A-B+C-D-E-F= Local contribution.
H. Each member town’s proportionate share of the local contribution shall be determined based on its assessed taxable property value in the regional school district on December 1 of the preceding year for which the apportionment will be assessed.
I. The combined operating and capital assessment will be determined by taking the local contribution (G) multiplied by the ratios as determined in (H).
