2020-03-25-AC-ATM-rpt - Laserfiche WebLink

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APPROPRIATION COMMITTEE-2.020 ATM 25 March 2020 the district causing an increase in Lexington's assessment of$251,653 (64%of the total increase) and (3) sharply increased debt service costs for the recent completed new school building, of which Lexington's share is $645,643. The District's Budget The Minuteman Regional High School(MRHS)Committee has approved a FY2021 budget of$25,502,946, a$2,734,117 increase (+12%) over FY2020. The increase is the net effect of a 6.56%increase in the cost of operations and a$1,477,552 increase in debt costs attributable to construction of the new MRHS build- ing. This budget funds the second year of operations in the new school building, designed for an enrollment of up to 628 students. Current high school enrollment is 602 students, of which 395 students come from the 10 member towns of the school district, and 207 students from out-of-district communities. District Developments The new school building was opened on schedule in September 2019 and was completed within budget. The cost of this project was offset by almost$44 million from the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA). The remaining balance was financed with bonded debt. The debt service is funded via the assess- ments to district members, and by a new state-authorized facilities fee for capital costs charged to non- member towns that enroll students at the school. This fee is set by the Department of Elementary and Sec- ondary Education(DESE)and towns are classified by whether they offer at least 5 Chapter 74 (vocational- technical) programs. In FY2020 $904,023 was collected and will be applied to the FY2021 budget. The per-student charge in FY2021 for towns lacking access to vocational-technical education will be $7,775 and $5,831 for towns that have programs. The district currently has ten member towns. Following a negative vote by the residents of the Town of Belmont in a special district-wide referendum election held in 2016 to approve the construction of the new MRHS facility, and with the consent of the remaining member towns, Belmont is scheduled to withdraw from the district effective July 1,2020. The net result of Belmont's withdrawal is the loss of$1,508,256 of assessment revenue from the FY2021 budget, and this increases Lexington's FY2021 assessment by over $250,000. While it was anticipated that the new school building would drive increased applications,the success has exceeded expectations. Applications for FY2021 from in-district towns are up 33%, with 230 applications received by January 30, 2020. In-district students are given priority, and for the first time in decades it is likely that the incoming freshman class will be 100% in-district. If this enrollment trend continues, by FY2024 the school enrollment could consist primarily of in-district students. Enrollment FYI1 FY12 FY13 FY14 FY15 FY16 FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20* FY21T In-district 445 430 409 437 410 391 347 337 354 395 482 Out-of-district 309 255 340 356 332 277 271 231 162 207 156 Total 754 685 749 793 742 668 618 568 516 602 638 *New school occupied. t Based on applications received. MRHS continues to have by far the highest average per-pupil costs of any regional vocational district. According to FY2018 state data,while still in the old building and with an enrollment of only 564 students, the per-student average cost was$35,111,compared to a statewide median of$21,996. The second-highest district, South Middlesex Regional Vocational Technical,had a per-pupil average cost of$26,846. MRHS has a significantly lower student-teacher ratio when compared to similar districts, due in part to its 46.5% enrollment in special education. This is the highest level of any public school in the state (the average is 18%). This level is similar for students coming from both in-district and out-of-district communities. Towns sending out-of-district students are responsible for providing transportation to their students and are subject to additional fees beyond the base tuition.These towns are assessed a"capital fee"which represents 9