By Lindsay Tice,Staff Writer

Rangeley could lose a chunk of its state aid next year to Lewiston, Auburn and other poorer school systems.

Under an amendment submitted by state Sen. Peter Mills, R-Cornville, and drafted by Republican Sen. David Hastings III, who serves Oxford-area towns, special education would be included in the Essential Programs and Services general funding formula.

The move would take state money from richer towns with low property taxes and distribute it among poorer towns with high taxes.

The current plan for next year has the state paying 84 percent of special education costs for all school systems, regardless of municipal wealth.

“That takes up so much of the money that there is little left for the towns that need it,” Hastings said.

Sen. John Nutting, D-Leeds, supports the amendment. He estimated that taking special education money from Maine’s 85 richest school systems would give the state another $20 million to distribute among the poorest.

Rangeley, for example, is a rich town with few students. It will raise only 4.65 mills for education next year, far below the 8.26 mills required to get state aid. Under the current plan, the town won’t get more general aid but will get $216,000 more for special education.

Under the amendment, Rangeley would likely see little of that extra $216,000 since special education funding would be treated like all other state aid. Instead, the money would be shared by school systems such as Lewiston, Auburn and SAD 17 in Oxford, which have high taxes and many special education students.

“The richest school districts in this state are getting a huge influx of money,” Mills said. “If the (funding) model is good enough for every other thing, why isn’t it good enough for special ed?”

Richer schools would not get a boost in special education funding under the amendment, but they would still be required to offer special services.

The amendment is expected to go to the Senate this morning.

Skimpy’ model

Mills also submitted an amendment that would phase in the Essential Programs and Services funding formula over two years instead of four. The new timeline, he said, would give more property tax relief and would likely settle the recent flood of complaints from superintendents who say their schools aren’t getting as much money as they expected from the new funding formula.

“The model hasn’t been given a chance to work because it’s skimpy,” Mills said.

He has suggested paying for the additional funding by adding a half-cent to the sales tax.

That amendment narrowly failed in the House Wednesday night. Mills said he would try to get an identical amendment in the Senate today.

Nutting said he liked the faster phase-in. But he also has his own way to settle complaints: His amendment would remove the school funding formula from the governor’s tax relief plan entirely. He wants the issue to go the Legislature’s Education Committee for study.

That amendment also narrowly failed Wednesday night. Mills said legislators were working on a compromise that would keep the formula in the tax relief bill but would order the Education Committee to study issues surrounding it.