DIXFIELD — Residents of the 12-town Western Foothills Regional School Unit 10 will  have a chance to vote on a $33.4 million operating budget at 6 p.m. Thursday.

The vote on the 2010-11 spending plan will take place in the community room of Dirigo High School. A validation vote on the approved amount will be held at polling stations in each RSU 10 town June 8.

The proposed budget reflects cuts of nearly $1.5 million because of state aid reductions. To arrive at the proposed figure, 11 teaching positions and one administrative position were eliminated, as were a substantial amount of technology and other equipment, textbooks and some maintenance.

This year’s budget is $34.2 million.

Despite the proposed budget reductions, school taxes would rise in most of the member towns under the plan because of a shift in valuation and fewer state aid dollars.

Residents on Thursday will vote on 20 individual articles.

The June 8 referendum vote will have just two questions: a vote of yes or no on the figure adopted Thursday, and whether to extend the two-part budget adoption process. If voters turn down the two-part voting process, then future budgets would be adopted at districtwide budget meetings.

eadams@sunjournal.com