Committee to work with neighboring towns on consolidation survey

JAY - School Committee members voted Thursday to work with their counterparts in Livermore, Livermore Falls and Fayette to develop a community survey on consolidation.
The survey would be mailed to residents in each town, Superintendent Robert Wall said. He and Chairwoman Mary-Redmond Luce developed the questionnaire.
In Jay, it would be mailed to 2,148 residences and cost $1,300 to $1,400, Wall said. There would be a stamped envelope included for returns.
Wall said it would be a good opportunity to see if voters in the four towns could agree on sharing services.
"I love the fact people can sign up for task forces," Redmond-Luce said, which could study sports and other issues.
"We hope to work this process through and make it ready to be sent out in August," Wall said.
The board also voted to set up a subcommittee to work with representatives of the other towns. Serving will be Redmond-Luce, Vice Chairwoman Tammy Dwinal-Shufelt, Wall and Jay Education Association member Annette Girardin.
In other business, the board unanimously voted to approve separate three-year contracts with teachers and educational technicians.
They also voted to approve a one-year agreement with nonunion personnel that carried an overall 2.25 percent pay increase, Wall said.
The teachers' pact gives those with bachelor's degrees a 1.87 percent pay increase during the first year and those with master's degrees a 2.48 percent increase. In the second year, the overall increase for union members is 2.16 percent, and in the third it is an overall 2.57 increase, Wall said.
Health insurance contributions will remain the same during the first year, but teachers will pay more toward the premium in the two other years at 15 percent each year, he said.
They agreed to split the difference if the premium goes up 5 percent, Jay Education Association negotiator Julie Taylor said.
The insurance provider did not increase premiums for the coming year, she said.
In the education technician contract, the overall increase in wages is 1.5 percent the first year, 2 percent the second year and 2.25 percent the third year, Wall said.
They, too, will contribute more for insurance, he said.
In the first year, the employee's contribution goes from 12 to 13 percent. In the second year, it is 14 percent and in the last year it is 15 percent, he said.
"I thought we had very positive negotiations with the teachers and ed techs," Wall said. "I thought it was a very good process and appreciate all the work, a tremendous amount of work, that went into it."
During the last contract negotiations, the Jay Education Association and the School Committee were not able to agree on a contract until more than a year after the previous one expired.
dperry@sunjournal.com