MEXICO - Voters of the 16-town vocational school region have a chance May 20 to act on a $1.9 million vocational education budget and a $295,520 adult and community education budget. The vote, a show of hands, takes place at 6:30 p.m. in the cafeteria of the Region 9 School of Applied Technology on River Road.

The proposed fiscal 2009 vocational budget is about 46 percent higher than this year's $1.3 million because of a now under-construction $4.9 million renovation and addition building project.

Of the total increase, $466,000 will go toward loan payments. Much of the remaining increase will pay for new programs in automotive technology and early childhood development.

Several positions and cooperative education were eliminated to make way for the new programs and added funding needed to pay for the loan.

The annual loan payment will decrease during the 15-year repayment period, according to documents provided by the vocational region.

Costs for each member district and unaffiliated town are: SAD 21, $560,658, 40 students; SAD 43, $810,909, 63 students; SAD 44, $474,865, 40 students; Gilead, $7,146; Hanover, $21,746, four students; and Upton, $3,761. Neither Gilead nor Upton had students enrolled in April 2007, the date of the other student figures.

The adult and community education budget is up about 16 percent from this year's $253,442 budget. Adult education director Nancy Allen said most of the increase is due to added costs because of the renovation and addition project.

New this year for adult education will be child care two nights a week so that adults can work on their GED or high school diploma, she said.