Boothbay and Boothbay Harbor voters passed a $10,898,543 Community School District budget June 23. The budget is a 2.6% increase in spending or 0.8% increase in taxes raised. The warrant’s 22 articles all passed with only a few getting slight push-back from the public; for the first time in recent memory, not a single article passed unanimously.

Melissa Whitt moderated, introducing each article and calling for each vote, except Article 14, by a show of hands. The Article 14 vote was carried out by secret  ballot.

Article 2, approval for $4,241,240 in regular instruction, passed with two votes against; Article 3, $2,001,201, special education, two against; Article 4, $0, career and technical education, two against; Article 5, $290,164, other instruction, two against; Article 6, $1,013,160, student and staff support, one against; Article 7, $262,414, system administration, one against; Article 8, $608,019, school administration, two against; Article 9, $446,345, transportation, one against; Article 10, $1,356,000, facilities maintenance, two against; Article 11, $415,000, debt service, two against; Article 12, $265,000, for all other expenses, one against; and Article 13, $5,350,962 in appropriations and $4,724,034 in amounts raised for Essential Programs and Services, one against.

Article 14 approved $4,092,581 in additional local funds. Those funds exceed the state’s EPS model by $3,827,581 due to costs of student-teacher ratios, special education programming, extracurricular activities and transportation. The article passed with 33 yes votes, seven no votes and two abstentions.

Article 15 summarized the $10,898,543 budget for approval and Article 16 appropriated $38,531 and raised $20,000 for adult education. Both articles passed, each with one vote against.

Articles 17 and 18 authorized the CSD to spend grant funds requiring no additional cost to the CSD and to use additional state subsidy. Both passed with one against and two against respectively. Article 19 authorized the transfer of 5% or more in funds from one cost center to another. The article passed with seven votes against. Article 20 passed with five votes against authorizing the transfer of $100,000 from the unassigned fund balance to the emergency reserve. Articles 21 and 22 passed, each with one vote against, authorizing spending for employee retirement and unemployment reserve funds as necessary.