LIVERMORE FALLS — The RSU 73 board set yet another budget workshop meeting for next week to get answers to some of the questions raised by members at Monday night’s session.

That meeting will be held at 6 p.m., March 12, at the Cedar Street superintendent’s office.

Superintendent Robert Wall said significant grants are no longer available, and the governor has proposed that school districts pay the state’s share of teacher retirement funds, at a cost of about $235,000. Much of the money that would be saved from closing the south campus of SpruceMountainHigh School would be used to cover these costs.

“We’ve tried to keep this budget and taxes down, but when outside money dries up or gets less, how do we still offer the programs?” Wall said.

A proposed $18,535,879 budget is under discussion. It reflects a $54,000 decrease from the current year.

Several positions have been cut from the proposed budget, while another four have been added to alleviate large class sizes in the lower elementary grades.

Board member Mary Redmond-Luce said consolidation of the former RSU 36 in LivermoreFalls and the Jay School Department was not necessarily to save money, but to offer more programs for students. She said both former districts were experiencing falling enrollments.

The consolidation means more electives will be offered to high school students, as well.

Board Chairwoman Denise Rodzen said closure of the south campus should have been described as using those funds so the district doesn’t have to raise taxes.

Wall said merging the former LivermoreFallsMiddle School with the SpruceMountainMiddle School in Jay resulted in many more opportunities for students.

“We hope to do the same at the high school,” he said.

Board members raised a number of questions that will be answered by administrators at the March 12 budget session. Among them:

* Comparative costs between introducing two bus runs and retaining the one bus run that would then be staffed with bus monitors.

* The total budget if Livermore and Livermore Falls school tax rates do not rise.

* Re-instituting a remedial program to assist high school students who are struggling with their English classes.

* Retaining a second high school art teacher position.

* Eliminating a student assistance staff position.

Wall said a downward spiral of state financial assistance, together with increasing costs for nearly everything, has led to difficult school budgets, but he also said that he doesn’t believe the tax base in the district’s three towns can handle higher taxes.

“If I put something in, then something else will have to be taken out,” he said.

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