By Geoffrey Wertime, Staff Writer
With the date for school elections of April 21 edging ever closer, more and more districts are introducing their budgets to voters.
In Florence, voters will be asked to approve a flat tax of $2.51 per $100 of assessed home value, the same as last year.
The district’s proposed total operating budget is about $23.8 million, a 4.7 percent increase over last year, with a bit over $13.2 million to be raised through taxation.
If approved, the budget would eliminate 4.5 teacher aide positions, and reduce another 4 to part-time status. A teacher set to retire at the end of the year would also not be replied.
Each of the district’s program’s budget line items was cut 10 percent.
This year Florence had to accommodate a new charter school, the Riverbank School of Excellence, in its budget. Superintendent Louis Talarico said the new school’s impact on the budget is about $1.1 million.
In Mansfield, residents face a 2.1 percent increase in the district’s overall budget, to almost $10 million.
Of that, just over $8 million would require voter approval to be raised through taxation.
If passed, the budget will lead to an increase of 2.5 cents per $100 of assessed home value, to about 66 cents. For the owner of a home valued at the Mansfield average of $335,500, the proposed budget calls for a bill of about $2,214 for the year, an increase of about $84 over last year.
The district plans to cut a number of positions, according to its budget presentation. While two special education teachers, while eliminating the position of principal at the John Hydock Elementary School. Instead, when the current principal retires at the end of the year, the school will have only a vice principal, according to Business Administrator Lisa Giovanelli.
A guidance counselor position that is currently filled is also on the slate to be cut, and the proposed budget would also save money by reducing the hours of the supervisor of social services, a formerly full-time janitor, and special area teachers’ non-instructional time.

