RTM Rejects Restoration to Board of Education Budget

For the second consecutive day this week, Westport's Representative Town Meeting met to deliberate the 2010-2011 budget — this time to consider the largest chunk of the overall town budget: the schools.

Overwhelmingly, the RTM approved the Board of Education budget as recommended by the Board of Finance at $96.1 million, a 1.6 percent increase over the current year.

The Board of Education had asked the RTM for a full restoration Tuesday to approve its original budget of $96.6 million, a 2.13 percent increase over its current school year budget. The Board of Finance voted to reduce that request by $1 million in March and then restored half of it last month. On Tuesday, Board of Education chairman Donald G. O'Day asked for the remaining $500,000 to be restored.

A "$500,000 cut" would likely equate to losing personnel, result in larger class sizes and mean eliminating some extra curricular activities, O'Day said.

While many RTM members said they supported the schools, many more said this is not the year to reinstate funding. Deliberations led to discussions on the dichotomous "700 Club" from the 700 who signed a petition supporting a budget increase  to maintain the quality of the schools even if it meant higher taxes to the 700 Wesptort families whom are either unemployed or underemployed — and are the ones the RTM doesn't hear from.

"It's so ironic we have this 700 and 700," said RTM member John Suggs of District 5. "I'm going to look at this from the 700 who are out of work and I'm a firm believer that adversity doesn't build character but it reveals character. And I hope and think this can be our finest hour as a town — and for our students who are here watching — that we commit to make the hard choices, that we decide we will live with fiscal integrity in our lives. ... And in so doing, we will reveal our character as a town and a community and that may be the most priceless lesson we can bestow to our children."

RTM member John McCarthy of District 9 argued for the restoration, saying the Board of Education delivered a responsible budget.

He also referred to a chart O'Day presented to the crowd that showed Westport's budget increase over a two-year time frame is one of the lowest in the District Reference Group, and only a few percentage points ahead of Weston.

"Nobody ever likes to be at the far right of these charts but there we are," McCarthy said. "I put a motion out there that we vote for a full restoration."

He also urged anyone watching the budget discussions on television that if they don't like what they were seeing to run for a seat on the RTM.

"If you care about it, stop throwing things at the TV , come on down and join us the next time there is an RTM election," he said. "A lot of us ran uncontested."

McCarthy's motion failed 4 to 31. In order for a restoration to occur, the RTM had to reach a 70 percent majority vote, which would equate to 25 votes.

A second motion presented by RTM member Jack Klinge of District 7 proposed restoring $250,000 to the BOE budget. That motion also failed 9 to 26.

The RTM ultimately voted 34 to 1 to pass the Board of Finance recommended budget for the schools. RTM member Lois Schine opposed the motion. In her comments before the decision, she said she could not vote for any restoration and would have considered another cut.

Going into Tuesday's meeting, O'Day said he knew it would be difficult to earn 70 percent of the vote for restoration. 

"I was happy to see nine people did support restoration," he said. 

Moving forward, O'Day said Superintendent of Westport Public Schools Dr. Elliott Landon would present his recommendations of where to cut the $500,000 at the next Board of Education meeting, scheduled for May 17.

The board can then accept his recommendations, reduce them or add in additional changes, O'Day said. 

In terms of finding other ways to save money in the future, O'Day said the Board of Education is willing to work with the town. He suggests both the town and schools could combine finance departments as one area of consolidation.

"The town and the schools have to redouble their efforts and take turf off the table," O'Day said. "I'm willing to work with the Board of Finance."

Following the meeting, Westport resident Edward Devlin, a retired CFO of multiple companies, said the RTM "did the right thing."

"The town does not have enough disposable income," he said during the meeting. "We didn't have enough last year, we don't have enough this year and it will be far worse next year because there are things we must pay (pension obligations and union contracts).

Those considerations will likely continue to affect RTM decisions on the municipal budget, which is scheduled to be taken up again today at 7:30 p.m.

The meeting is open to the public and will be held in the auditorium of Westport Town Hall.