The Halifax Board of Selectmen met in-person on Friday, Feb. 11. State Senator Michael D. Brady and  State Representative Kathy LaNatra joined the Selectmen, Silver Lake administrators, and members of the Halifax Elementary School Committee for a discussion of the Silver Lake budget and its effect on Halifax’s town budget. Selectmen Chair Gordon Andrews explained that for fiscal year 2022, the cost for special needs out of district transportation skyrocketed to $300,000 due to transportation companies going out of business or being bought out. As a result, the town is going to be in a deficit for this fiscal year of $300,000. Andrews said that the town does have free cash that they can use to make up some of that deficit. He said that they will have the ability to pay that amount of money for this fiscal year at Town Meeting.

“What we are asking for is if there is some extraordinary or some way of funding increased costs because of COVID to fund out of district special needs transportation and special needs tuition itself,” Andrew told the local lawmakers. He explained that they were looking at an increase of $500,000 for the next fiscal year for just special needs tuition and transportation. He asked if there was some sort of legislation possible to assist in paying those expenses. “The amount of money the town spends on education is more than what the formula equates, and I really think the formula doesn’t take any consideration into what is actually being spent for special needs,” Andrews explained.

Regarding Chapter 70 funding, Andrews said, “Another aspect of legislation that would be helpful to the town, would be that the Chapter 70 formula would break out the Chapter 70 aid per town; it used to do that… up until the 2006/2007 timeframe… and right now it’s just a lump sum that is given to Silver Lake and it comes off the top whereas the town of Halifax should be receiving 44 percent aid, Kingston should be getting around 33 percent, and Plympton is supposed to be getting 25 percent so our proportionality drops as theirs rises up.” Asked about enrollment in Silver Lake by percentage per town, Silver Lake Director of Business Services Christine Healy said that Kingston represents roughly 57 percent, Halifax 30 percent, and Plympton 12 percent.

Andrews said, “If we have to cut $300,000, we’re going to decimate the Elementary School because Police, Fire, Highway, they’re all at minimum staffing.” He pointed out that Police and Fire personnel could leave to go to a neighboring community and make significantly more. Halifax Elementary School Committee Chair Summer Schmaling explained that what typically will happen is that Kingston and Plympton will usually vote to approve the Silver Lake budget while Halifax does not. This leaves Halifax forced to support the Silver Lake budget at the expense of other town departments.

Andrews said that Halifax was projected to spend $14,900,000 on the schools. “When you look at the foundation budget combined across it’s saying that we should be at $14,195,000,” he explained. “We do have a large portion of students within the special needs category that is not being addressed by the Chapter 70 formula,” Andrews continued.

Superintendent Jill Proulx spoke up saying, “I would agree that transportation is an issue not only in special education but even just from a regional school district’s point of view, transportation in general, the lack of competition, the lack of vendors, it creates a problem, a lack of opportunities for us and it really limits other areas that we would like to be focused on.” Proulx said that a non-regional school district that finds themselves in financial trouble, can pass on the charge to students to ride the bus, but a regional school district cannot.

Administrator of Special Education for Silver Lake Marie Grable said they are currently in a situation where they spend $650 per day to transport a special needs student to a school that they need to attend. Andrews and Schmaling thanked Grable for working so diligently the last few years to keep as many students in Silver Lake’s schools as possible as it is a significant cost savings.

LaNatra said she would collaborate with her colleagues to see if they have any solutions and also to see where they stand with their transportation costs. Brady said that the County is applying for more money and pointed out that some of these expenses could be COVID related. “We will try to reach out to any resource,” Brady said. “We will bring this back and see what we can come up with for you,” LaNatra assured them. “I truly want to thank both of you and your staff for coming in and listening to us and trying to help us,” Andrews told Brady and LaNatra.

Police Chief Joao Chaves spoke on a proposed bylaw change for the animal control officer (ACO). Chaves explained that the updates were intended to bring the town up to the State fine schedule. One recommendation was to add vaccination against rabies per the State’s guidelines. “On the fee schedule, penalties for violation of this article – $50 for the first offense, second violation $100, third violation $300, fourth or subsequent $500, and any violation that results in personal injury or property damage in excess of $50 should be a fine of $100,” Chaves explained. Regarding licensing fees Chaves said, “We are recommending… that no license fees should be charged for a dog owned by a person aged 70 or older… late fees and citations may still be charged.”

A fee of $10 may be charged if your dog is not licensed after September 1 and after September 15, $20 per dog. After November 1, a citation of $50 may be issued. “That brings us in line with the State?” Selectman Troy Garron asked. Chaves confirmed that it did. The Selectmen voted to approve the requested changes.

Andrews said there was a proposal for $1,850,000 to sell property to the town for municipal buildings. Andrews said it was put out the Buildings Facilities and Needs Committee. “I think the purchase of the property could make sense long-term for the town; I am not sure of where to get the funds to purchase other than a debt exclusion,” Andrews said. “The purchase of the property would make sense to gain land for future development of municipal services for the town,” Andrews continued. “I would say we have to say no at this time because we are already in the red,” Garron said. Garron also said he didn’t believe a debt exclusion would pass at Town Meeting. Andrews also said that there was a possibility of using a previous bond for the Elementary School to fund a similar purchase or for the Council on Aging. Chaves said he was in support of the purchase of the land as it would be needed to move forward with a “municipal complex.” The Selectmen voted not to accept the offer at this time.

Andrews shared a status report from the Municipal and School Building Committee. Regarding the Elementary School, Andrews said that LED lights had been installed. He also said that the oil tank is shifting in the dirt cellar of Pope’s Tavern and as a result a concrete pad will be poured. He said that window replacement there started in January. The bottom of the middle building of the Recycling Center is rotting, and it will need to be repaired and replaced as needed.

Town Administrator Ed Thorne provided an update. He told the Selectmen that an Ethics Training and Seminar would be held over two days the following week for members of various boards and commissions.

Garron and Selectman Ashley DiSesa discussed the potential candidates for an opening for an associate member on the Zoning Board of Appeals. Andrews recused himself. Garron nominated Marline Amedee, who had previously run for multiple openings on various boards and committees. DiSesa seconded the motion.

The Selectmen ended the meeting with a discussion of a change to the start time of Town Meeting. The proposed change was from 7:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Andrews said the earlier time could pose a problem as the Board of Selectmen and Finance Committee tend to meet beforehand to discuss articles. DiSesa said she felt the earlier time might be more beneficial for certain residents, including older ones. Garron said he was fine with the earlier time.

The Selectmen voted to move the annual town meeting in May to 6:30 p.m. and the special to 7 pm. The Selectmen voted to open the warrant for the Annual Town Meeting. They also voted to close it on March 22.  All the petition articles are due by March 1.

There was a joint meeting of the Silver Lake Regional School Committee and Union 31 on Thursday, Feb. 10. There was a public budget hearing as well as a robust discussion of all things budget related.

Shared Costs Discussion

The meeting began with a review of shared cost contracts. Superintendent Jill Proulx said there were more shared cost contracts this year than usual. Most shared cost positions would be receiving a three percent increase for up to three years. The exceptions would be for the Assistant Superintendent and an administrative assistant who are both making below the average salaries for their position and experience levels. For those positions, there was a proposed salary adjustment.

There was also a proposal for a new shared cost position of Director of Human Resources at an expense of $100,000 to $110,000. The complexities of the regionalization necessitated such a position. Halifax Selectman and member of the Halifax Elementary School Gordon Andrews said, “While I believe that Director of Human Resources would be an important position, I don’t think it should be funded in this upcoming fiscal year.” Silver Lake Regional School Committee Chair Paula Hatch called the administrative team “very slim” and urged everyone to consider the position.

Director of Business Services Christine Healy said that the current shared cost budget is $1,816,164. The shared cost budget that was voted during the meeting was $2,005,164. Andrews asked for the current year’s shared cost budget and was told it was $1,783,176.  Included in the shared cost budget was Proulx’s contract. Both the shared cost budget and Proulx’s contract were voted through. Union 31’s Halifax members voted against the shared cost budget despite it passing.

Public Budget Hearing

Following the votes, Union 31 adjourned and the Silver Lake Regional School Committee’s public budget hearing began. Andrews spoke on behalf of Halifax outlining the vast increases for the town just for special needs tuition, transportation, and the Elementary School budget. Andrews said that Halifax’s minimum contribution will be increasing noting, “the budget of Silver Lake is really unaffordable for the town – the way that it continues to grow.” Andrews said that Halifax should be receiving the most in Chapter 70 funding but said that each town receives an equal amount. Andrews acknowledged that the problem in the disbursement of Chapter 70 is a problem with the legislature not the school.

Kingston School Committee member Jeanne Coleman said, “Try to cut as little as you can… do what you can to bring it to town meeting and hopefully get the support there.” She expressed concern over the students losing much of what makes school fun and enjoyable. Fellow Kingston Committee member Sheila Marie Vaughn argued for the same.

Kingston Treasurer Carl Pike said he was speaking as a resident. “I really think the important thing is we all continue to work together. I get concerned when I hear town officials talking about cuts; there are times when we have to ask for a second look at a budget… I believe strongly that we need to support school budgets,” Pike said. He continued, “Do I think that we can afford as communities to have 5 or 6 percent assessment increases? Absolutely not… I believe that we have some of the finest administrators and teachers in the State and I trust in them to work with the budgets that are reasonable considering other Departments like Police and Fire and Roads and Streets.” The public budget hearing was closed.

Superintendent’s Budget Presentation

Proulx began her budget update by saying that at the last School Committee meeting, it was asked that they cut $400,000 from the most recent iteration of the budget and then build back in $300,000. She said that the preliminary budget is an increase of 3.74 percent. Special education transportation is a 21.36 percent increase and payroll and benefits account for 82 percent of the budget. Health insurance is estimated at 5 percent and included several retirements. She said that several recurring costs for technology and hardware were moved from the Capital Plan and into the budget.

During Tier Two of the budget, Proulx said they began to look at outside of the budget requests and asked principals to consider what could be cut. “Our number one priority across our district leadership team and our principals is the addition of curriculum coordinators. It would come with an increase of $12,000. She said another request was for a 12-month assistant principal at the high school. The Middle School is looking for a split position for a special education teacher and reading teacher. Multiple cuts would have to be made to equipment, supplies and other items to make these positions possible.

The $100,000 in cuts were made up by $20,000 from maintenance of the field, $10,000 from maintenance of buildings, $4,200 from high school teaching supplies, $3,000 from high school textbooks as well as several other smaller cuts.

Proulx noted that there was also mention of adding a K-12 arts coordinator at a cost of $100,000. She noted that it was a shared cost position and not a Silver Lake one but said that she was looking for direction from the Committee. Another issue brought forth was the lack of instrumental education in two out of the three elementary schools. Ways to fund that need were discussed at previous meetings.

Proulx said that private, parochial, and charter school tuitions have all decreased from the previous year. This is beneficial for the public schools. Regarding charter school tuition, Committee member Eric Crone said that since 2016 that dollar amount has increased three-fold from $350,000 to $1,000,000.

Assessments

Healy spoke on the assessments for FY23. “It’s in our regional agreement, it’s the way that we have to assign our costs,” she said of the assessments. Healy also noted that the minimum contribution is assigned by the State based on their own calculations. Both Halifax and Kingston will be paying more than the previous year while Plympton will be paying less. Healy said that state aid is at $7.6 million that  is an increase over recent years. “The total increase for our assessments with capital and based on the operating budget… is $360,000 or a 1.86 percent increase… operating and capital,” Healy explained.

Legislative Update

Andrews did some quick math during the meeting and said that the overall increase from last year’s to this year’s budget stood at $1,183,066. Committee member Jason Fraser noted that they would be receiving $400,000 more this year from the State thereby reducing that number. Fraser continued with his legislative update saying, “I wouldn’t be surprised if we see Circuit Breaker fully funded,” referring to the State’s program to provide reimbursement for special education. He said that additional funding could come in from Chapter 70. “I acknowledge the burdens on the towns but I want to also make sure that we are clear that the number we’re seeing from the Chapter 70 funds from regional transportation, even potentially from charter school reimbursement, we may see only rise to support us even more,” Fraser explained.

Fraser also told the Committee that he has asked Representative Kathy LaNatra if she could propose an amendment to increase the minimum aid per pupil amount in Chapter 70 from $30 to $100. Fraser also said that he has pushed for an extension of the current policy of free meals at schools for all students. He said they were asking Congress to make it a federal policy. “We know that kids that eat behave better academically and have less behavioral issues,” Fraser explained.

Halifax’s Position on the Budget

Hatch argued that due to no fault of its own, Halifax is not capable of supporting the budget as presented. She noted it was not a philosophical difference but a practical one. “It’s circumstance; there is nothing that can be done about it,” she explained.

Pike asked to speak again saying, “The bottom-line expense that you’re talking about here now, is right around 4 percent. What you do when you have a 4 percent bottom-line is you have two choices – you can go to the communities and go for a proposition 2 ½ override. You can do that so often, you can’t, in my opinion, you can’t convince any community to be doing a proposition 2 ½ override every single year because you need 4 percent increases to run your budget… the other thing you do is maybe you can somehow make it balance but that means that I have to tell my Police Department and my Fire Department and my Parks Department, hey you guys only get a 1 percent increase this year.”

Fraser said that as the second most senior member of the Committee, they have never asked for a proposition 2 ½ override. He noted that he had never been a part, on either of the Committees he serves on, of a budget that was over a 3 percent increase. Fraser said, “However, I am not going to ignore the needs of the students and ignore the needs of the school, especially as we emerge from the past two years.”

Schmaling verified that just the budgets of the schools as they stand currently, without taking into account the operating budget of the town, would force Halifax into an override. She explained to the Committee that such an override would be extremely unlikely to pass. She asked if the town would be forced to support the schools’ budgets, at the expense of other town departments, due to the regional agreement. Andrews explained that the regional agreement forced them to support Silver Lake but not the elementary school. Given that the elementary school is a large portion of the town’s budget, and the other departments are at minimum funding, severe cuts would likely have to be made to the school to support the regional agreement with Silver Lake. “This is extremely painful and uncomfortable that our situation is causing this struggle that we’re having,” Hatch said of Halifax’s position.

Halifax resident and Silver Lake Regional School Committee member Gordon Laws asked, “Is there nothing at all that we can do to monetize and raise revenue that is not tax related and is somehow positive?” “We have overtime put efforts in, we looked at solar panels… only to find out it wasn’t feasible,” Hatch explained. She named other items that had been investigated as well. Fraser said that he was currently working with local lawmakers on a revolving fund for assessments, “where if towns have a low assessment… that there would be incentives for municipalities to put those dollars into a revolving fund where the State would potentially give a percentage match – like a ten percent to encourage that investment.” The Committee agreed to look at and vote the budget at their next meeting in March.

Book Controversy

Hatch said that they were contacted by a parent of a student in the Middle School asking that they review the book, So Far from the Bamboo Grove, that is part of the curriculum. Hatch said that they were advised to follow the school policy and create a review committee to review the request and present it to the larger Committee for a decision. Fraser said that he felt it appropriate that anyone that serves on the review committee commit to reading the book. In addition to a handful of School Committee members, Proulx recommended that the Assistant Superintendent, ELA Coordinator, at least one principal, a guidance director, a counselor, a few parents and students, and several teachers also serve on the review committee.

Principals’ Reports

Silver Lake Regional High School Principal Michaela Gill turned things over to Student Council Representative Mia Mitchell. Mitchell referenced Governor Charlie Baker’s recent announcement that the mask mandate in K-12 schools in the State will end on February 28. Mitchell said she thought the change would have a positive impact on students. Mitchell also provided the Committee with some school updates including a blood drive that is being planned by both Student Council and National Honor Society.

Gill told the Committee that there would be six new course offerings this year including digital photography 2, web development, game design, engineering design and development, medical Spanish, and AP U.S. Government and Politics. Gill said they would be removing some electives and making some other changes to better align with State standards. The Committee voted to accept all changes to the program of studies as presented by Gill.

Gill said that the annual curriculum night would be held following the February break. “We will provide an overview of our curriculum that sort of kicks off what we call course selection season; our eighth graders will be able to start thinking about what courses they want to enroll in at the high school,” Gill explained.

Gill provided a few more school updates including a recent PTO run calendar raffle fundraiser event. Prizes included gift certificates to local spas and restaurants. The grand prize was acting as principal for the day. It was won by freshman Will Hinkley. “We had a lot of fun… he declared it a homework free day and then he passed out 200 ice cream coupons at lunch” Gill said. “I might be out of a job soon,” Gill joked. The fundraiser raised over $4,000.

Gill also named a few staff members that were recently recognized for their efforts including ELA teacher Tracy MacDonald, nurse’s Aid Joanne Dart, English teacher Kelly Griffin, and main office para Jessica Gilbert.

Gill also told the Committee that preschool enrollment is open for residents of Halifax, Kingston, and Plympton.

Middle School Principal James Dupille also provided an update for the Committee. He said that 18 students have received recognition for achievement excellence or citizenship. The teachers vote on the recipient and Dupille awards the students with pins and certificates and calls the parents to alert them of the achievement. Dupille also said that they brought back the History Bee after a hiatus due to COVID. He said that nine students have qualified to move onto the regional round. The Committee applauded the achievement.

Assistant Superintendent’s Update

Assistant Superintendent Ryan Lynch touched upon grant funding. “We do have access to ESSER II funding as well as ESSER III funding… and we’re continuing to move forward in identifying our needs and providing support for students as we can,” Lynch explained. Schmaling thanked the team for making applying for these grants a priority and said, “For public knowledge I just want to note the dollar amount for Silver Lake alone; the grant funding that we obtained for fiscal year 2022 is $1,665,322.31 so it’s certainly nothing to sneeze at.” She did, however, point out that a large portion of the budget is funded by these grants and grants don’t last forever. She cautioned about the sustainability of the budget.

Updated COVID Protocols

Proulx began her update with some COVID changes. She said that isolation was changed to 5 days rather than 10. She also mentioned the new testing program that allows students and staff to opt into a free, at-home test each week. She also mentioned that the State has rescinded the mask mandate for Grades K-12 after February 28. Masks will still be required on buses as it is a federal regulation.

The Halifax Finance Committee met virtually on Jan. 31. Chair Thomas Connolly led things off with a roll call. Vice Chair Cheryll Zarella- Burke was in attendance as were Todd Dargie, Michael Bennett, and Jonathan Schmaling. Town Accountant Sandra Nolan, Town Clerk Susan Lawless, and Holmes Public Library Director Jean Gallant were also present.

Regarding the Fiscal Year 2023 budget, Connolly said, “There’s no new action, other than keep educating ourselves about what’s there.” Nolan noted that she did add $150,000 to revenues for motor vehicle excise. “We’ve always been very conservative, and we did very well last year on motor vehicle excise which was surprising; this year the State is estimating about a 7 percent increase,” Nolan explained.

Nolan also said that they did not yet have the assessment from Silver Lake. She said that there is currently a placeholder for level funding. The Committee noted that the estimate was that Silver Lake’s portion of the assessment would be going up $340,000. “That’s where the rubber is going to hit the road,” Connolly said. Nolan said that to stay in the black, the number would have to be closer to $164,000. “So that obviously goes well over that,” Nolan said.

Linda Cole said that health insurance would be less than what was estimated in the budget. “It will fluctuate a ton between now and then… it will come down, probably significantly,” she explained. She said that the same is true every year. The placeholder is currently set at 7 percent, but the actual number will likely be closer to 3 or 4.

Burke said that she had heard from the Police Chief that the Police Department plans to have a vote at town meeting to purchase two new cruisers. She also said that the Police Chief said that the town has eight auxiliary officers who need to pay their own way through the Police Academy. “So needless to say, they’re not going to do that, so we’re probably going to lose them.” Connolly asked if it was standard practice for towns to have auxiliary officers pay for the academy themselves and was told it was. As a result, the town may end up paying more in overtime for officers. Lawless brought up the high cost of paying officers overtime to fill the shifts normally filled by the auxiliary officers, were they to leave. Connolly responded saying, “Is there a way, you know, local businesses could pay that tuition, or we recruit new auxiliaries who are willing to foot the bill themselves if that is consistent with what other towns ask of their auxiliaries; maybe we can just find a creative way to cover those costs or find someone who is committed enough that they’ll cover them themselves.” Zarella-Burke recommended having the Police Chief attend their next meeting to discuss.

Regarding some of the other departments under Zarella-Burke’s purview she said that while they understand the need for level funded budgets, some costs are out of their control. She gave the rising cost of ambulance supplies as an example.

It was suggested that the Committee approach the department heads to ask for a few ideas for ways to increase their revenues. It was recommended that fee schedules be looked at among other things. “It’s definitely worth looking at,” Nolan agreed. Gallant asked if the library should consider going back to instituting fines for late items. Nolan said that the amount generated would be very small. Gallant said that the Board of Trustees was split on whether to charge late fees though she noted she was against them.

Connolly said that they had a request from the Board of Selectmen. The Selectmen plan to hire an assistant and asked that the position be moved to a Grade 2, Step 3 due to her experience. The Finance Committee voted to approve the request.

Connolly explained that Committee member Michael O’Brien has previous commitments that overlap with much of the work being done by the Finance Committee on Monday evenings. “What I wanted to propose to Michael, if it’s acceptable to the Committee, is that he remain on the Committee, he remain the contact for the departments that he is looking after, and it’s not every Monday that he needs to be away… if he’s amenable to it, because he did express that he would like to stay on the Committee, he’ll miss votes, he’ll miss certain evenings but we still have a quorum without him and then on the evenings that he can join us, he’ll update us on whatever is happening with the budgets that he’s working on,” Connolly explained. While no vote was needed, the Committee did agree to move forward with Connolly’s plan contingent upon O’Brien’s agreement.