Uxbridge voters nix override
Ballot question sought to defray $1.32M in school costs to FY2018
UXBRIDGE — Town election voters Tuesday defeated a ballot question seeking a $1.32 million Proposition 2½ tax override to defray school salary and operational costs for fiscal year 2018.
The ballot question was the second hurdle for proponents of the proposed override. On May 9, annual town meeting voters approved the measure by a vote of 369 to 242, but second and final approval was needed Tuesday at the ballot box, where it was defeated by a vote of 1,538 to 953.
A total of 2,499 of the town’s 9,710 registered voters went to the polls.
The override, which was requested by the School Committee, had been recom- mended by both the selectmen and the Finance Committee. Had it passed Tuesday, the $1,320,000 override was to be split between the next two fiscal years. The $1,320,000 included $730,000 to be appropriated by the School Department next year, and the remaining $590,000 to be retained as excess levy capacity for next
“The community has spoken. We will accept the will of the voters and work to provide quality programs and services for students in the upcoming school year with the resources provided to us .” —Uxbridge Superintendent Kevin Carney
year and then appropriated by the School Department in fiscal year 2019.
The School Committee is proposing a $22.3 million fiscal 2018 budget, which leaves a $720,000 gap between expected appropriations and other revenue, and that is the reason the override was requested.
Proposition 2½ is the title given to an initiative petition adopted by Massachusetts voters in 1980. The main features of Proposition 2½ are related to the total amount of property taxes that a city or town can raise each year.
The override proposed in Uxbridge would have added 46 cents per $1,000 valuation to property taxes in fiscal 2018 and an additional 38 cents per $1,000 in fiscal 2019.
So, based on a home valued at $290,000, the annual tax bill would have increase by $134 in 2018 and then increase by another $244 in 2019.
According to school officials, the override, which would have resulted in a monthly increase of $10.18 to the average household over the next two years, would have maintained interscholastic athletics and student activities as well as prevent class sizes from reaching 25-28 students at the elementary levels.
The tax override also would have provided each student in Grades 4-8 with individual access to computer laptop devices. In addition, the Taft Early Learning Center will gain wireless computer access throughout the building and all teachers at the Whitin Elementary School and McCloskey Middle School will be provided with computer laptops to enhance classroom instruction.
According Residents for Uxbridge Schools, a citizens group advocating for the override, approval of the measure would have maintained class size and instructional support; implement technology into elementary classrooms.
In a statement issued today, Schools Superintendent Kevin Carney said,
“On behalf of the School Committee, faculty and staff, administration, and students, we thank you for your support, tireless work, and advocacy over the past two months. We are obviously disappointed in the outcome of the override vote, but we are also pleased by the number of voters who came out to support the schools after a very brief campaign.”
“Our volunteers who organized the ‘Vote Yes’ campaign deserve so much credit for motivating over 950 supporters to the ballot. Imagine what they will be able to do with a year of planning. We must now prepare for increased class sizes in 20172018. Communication about the new transportation fees and increased sports fees will be delivered over the next two weeks. These are the difficult decisions that we have worked hard to avoid for several years, but we can no longer delay these changes with shrinking resources year after year.”
“The community has spoken,” he said. “We will accept the will of the voters and work to provide quality programs and services for students in the upcoming school year with the resources provided to us.”