FARMINGTON — Regional School Unit 9 directors will hold a special meeting Thursday, July 20, to decide how 50 percent of the $729,000 in additional state revenue will be used in the 2017-18 budget.

The state released additional revenue for school systems earlier this week. The state Legislature passed a $7.1 billion state budget on July 3.

The meeting is at 7 p.m. in the Forum at Mt. Blue Campus in Farmington.

The other 50 percent, $364,500, will go to further reduce property tax assessments, Superintendent Tom Ward said Thursday.

“We can hit our goal of a zero percent overall increase in school assessments to our towns,” he said.

Directors approved a proposed $33.5 million budget, in a weighted vote of 574-343 on June 29, to go before voters at 7 p.m. July 25 in a districtwide meeting at Bjorn Auditorium at Mt. Blue Campus.

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It is $344,524 lower than a budget that failed on June 13.

A referendum validation on the new budget approved on July 25 will be held Aug. 3 in each of the 10 towns.

Voters in the 10 district towns rejected a proposed $33.89 million by a vote of 1,457 to 1,641 at the polls June 13. It reflected an increase of $1.14 million more than the 2016-17 budget.

The new proposal represents an increase of $803,639, or an overall 2.54 percent, Ward said June 30.

The board will need to decide by a majority vote on July 20 what amount of the $364,500 in additional state funding will go into each of the following categories: regular instruction; special education; career and technical education; other instruction; student and staff support; system administration; school administration; transportation and buses; and facilities maintenance.

The amount for any of the categories can be zero.

Voters will also vote on the article on July 25.

dperry@sunmediagroup.net

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