AUBURN – In an attempt to cut school administration costs, City Councilor Ron Potvin proposed Wednesday night that two assistant principals be moved, and the consulting position held by former Superintendent Barbara Eretzian be eliminated.

Potvin, the mayor’s representative on the Auburn School Committee, proposed that one assistant principal at Edward Little High School and one at the Auburn Middle School be moved.

One would become principal at Washburn Elementary; that school now has an interim principal. The other would become an “administrative principal” who would spend half of his or her time helping Superintendent Tom Morrill, the other half helping oversee the middle and high schools.

The change would leave Edward Little with one principal and three assistant principals; and the middle school with one principal and one assistant (or one dean), plus the administrative principal.

Potvin said his proposal would save between $150,000 to $250,000 a year, promote two assistant principals to principals, and give the superintendent support in the front office.

His proposal would also address public concern with Eretzian’s contract and administrative staffing. Critics have said Auburn is too heavy on administration, and Eretzian’s pay of $45,000 for 60 days, which equals $750 a day, is too much. Eretzian has used her 60 days and is still working in the office on projects, Morrill said. At this point she is volunteering her time, he said.

At Potvin’s urging, the committee voted 5-3 that his proposal be placed on the March 5 agenda. Several committee members were opposed, but outnumbered.

Committee member Thomas Kendall said Potvin’s proposal would likely be controversial, “and I don’t think tonight is the forum” to have the idea introduced.

“It sort of cuts my arm off before I get to the budget,” agreed committee member Bonnie Hayes. She said she preferred to take up the proposal when the committee dealt with personnel in the upcoming budget. “We’re dealing with people’s lives here,” she said.

“It deals with nobody’s lives,” Potvin said. “It’s a reassignment of personnel.” He also said he had the right to introduce the proposal, that it deserved its own forum and should not “be shoveled into the administrative part of the workshop budget.”

Hayes, Kendall and David Das voted against putting the item on the March 5 agenda. Potvin, Jason Pawlina, Larry Pelletier, Francois Bussiere and Lane Feldman voted in favor.

Feldman said he didn’t see anything wrong with discussing Potvin’s proposal. “It’s an idea. I don’t see why we can’t talk about it.”

In other business, Superintendent Morrill reported that the upcoming school budget faces less income from several sources, making it a difficult budget year. The revenue losses include:

• $475,000 less from the Auburn City Council, as previously reported.

• about $350,000 less from the federal government in Medicaid reimbursements for services given to special education students. Those services include things such as occupational and speech therapy, transportation and case management. The School Department will still have to provide the services, but by July 1 the federal government will not reimburse those expenses.

• Auburn schools may get the same amount of money from the state as last year, or possibly a bit more, but not the expected $1 million increase that was to help with tax relief. The extra state money may not come because the state is dealing with a $200 million deficit due to less tax revenue from a slowed economy.

How much school districts can expect from the state could be released Friday by the Maine Department of Education. “The forecast is grim right now,” Morrill said. The extra $1 million that was expected will likely fall short of that, Morrill said.

Also Wednesday night, the committee voted to approve three-year contracts of five principals, and a one-year contract for one assistant principal.

The three-year contracts and their salary packages (including health coverage costs), are: David Eretzian, Franklin/Merrill Hill alternative school, $95,156; Katherine Grondin, Sherwood Heights, $99,045; Catherine Folan, Fairview, $89,481; Michelle McClellan, Walton, $99,045; and Laura Shaw, assistant principal at Fairview, $61,857.

A one-year contract for Susan Dorris, assistant principal at East Auburn, was also approved. Her salary package is $73,960.