School Committee Members Explains COVID Funds Use as Town Mulls Budget Cuts

Hanson officials propose $207,000 in reductions to meet Whitman-Hanson district's budget needs

HANSON, MA - June 11 - Hanson officials are grappling with tough budget decisions as they consider $207,000 in cuts to fully fund the Whitman-Hanson Regional School District's requested budget increase.

The proposed cuts, presented at a June 11 Select Board meeting, include reducing hours for several town positions and eliminating a senior highway equipment operator role.

"If you want to keep the budget the way that it is, the motion is going to be to accept the reduced budget for Whitman Hanson regional school district," said Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett.

The cuts would impact departments across town government, with the exception of public safety. Proposed reductions include:

- Cutting administrative assistant hours in the selectmen's office from 19 to 15 per week

- Reducing a part-time assessor position from 32 to 25 hours weekly

- Decreasing treasurer/collector staff hours from 19 to 15 per week

- Eliminating a budgeted part-time IT position

- Reducing the conservation agent from 35 to 25 hours weekly

- Cutting transfer station operations from five to four days per week

- Decreasing health department staff hours

Town officials emphasized the difficult position they're in, with FitzGerald-Kemmett warning of potentially more severe cuts next year if an override doesn't pass.

"At the current pace that we're at, we're looking at an override next year. If that override does not pass, this is just going to be a drop in the bucket on the cuts that we're going to, I mean, we're going to eviscerate town hall," she said.

The proposed cuts come as school officials defended their use of federal COVID-19 relief funds to restore previously eliminated positions and meet increased student needs.

School committee vice chair Hillary Kniffen explained that 19 positions were cut from the district in fiscal year 2019, prior to receiving the relief funds. The district then used the one-time federal money to address staffing shortages and support students as they returned to in-person learning.

"We were already behind and now we were sort of backed into a corner," Kniffen said. "You have to serve at least two months by statute."

She noted the district has seen significant increases in English language learner students, special education needs, and other areas requiring additional staffing.

"Our ELL population in 2021, in the fall of 2021 was 75 students and in February of this year, it was 223 students," Kniffen said. Town officials expressed frustration with unfunded state mandates and the difficult position they put municipalities in. "This is just yet another unfunded overreach, you know, and it's getting nauseating," FitzGerald-Kemmett said.

The proposed cuts aim to fund a $372,141 increase for the school district. In addition to the $207,000 in reductions, officials plan to use $126,000 from a previous town meeting article and $38,000 in anticipated additional state aid.

Select Board members emphasized the gravity of the situation, with FitzGerald-Kemmett noting, "We have a responsibility, um, to everybody, to our employees, to the citizens, to everybody, everybody in town, um, to try to be prudent, um, and not, not be, um, you know, spending money that we, we don't have."

A special town meeting is scheduled for June 17 to vote on the budget proposals. Officials urged residents to attend and make informed decisions about the town's financial future.