Voters in South Burlington will be heading to the polls Thursday to vote on the city’s school budget, with voters required to wear facial coverings inside polling places because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The city is requiring masking during the vote on the school board’s proposed $53.7 million school budget, drafted after voters initially rejected the district’s $55.8 million budget proposal in March.
The vote has received a high amount of attention in the community, including opposition from some who also opposed a proposed $209.6 million bond to rebuild the city’s middle and high school in March that was defeated by an overwhelming margin.
The district’s initial $55.8 million budget proposal was defeated 4,711-3,561, a margin of 57% to 43%. That budget would have led to an estimated 11.2% tax increase.
The new proposed $53.7 million budget, a 4.35% increase over the last budget year, will lead to an estimated 5.91% tax increase.
South Burlington is one of over 15 districts across the state that does not have a budget in place. Eight other districts had their budgets rejected by voters on Town Meeting Day in March.
Bridget Burkhardt, the school board’s clerk, said the district and board worked to cut the budget after voters rejected the initial proposal. The largest cut to the new proposal is a $583,342 reduction in facility stewardship costs saved by canceling planned facility upgrades.
Burkhardt said the district saved additional money by cutting planned pay increases for non-union staff, including some business office employees and bus drivers, and by cutting some positions.
These position cuts include a seasonal ground worker position, an alumni development position and a transportation logistics position, among others. The district also will not be adding security personnel to all of its schools as initially planned.
“It’s mostly eliminating positions, and most of them are not directly student-facing, it’s mostly central office staff, HR staff, that kind of thing,” she said. “It will make the district more challenging for us to run, for sure.”
Resident John Stern, who led the effort to defeat the school bond in March, opposes the budget and said he believes the district should be factoring the effects of the pandemic more in the budgeting process. He said that he believes the budget is “egregiously out of whack” with reality.
“The budget hasn’t changed in accordance with Covid,” he said. “Nothing in this current budget targets mitigating any of the effects of Covid. It makes no sense to me, it’s a big number, and it does not address what is going to happen in the new year.”
Burkhardt said that the coronavirus pandemic did raise questions about school funding in the state. But she said that significant budget cuts would lead to a restriction in services and activities offered to students.
“To expect a single district to try to influence that with one budget vote just a few weeks into a pandemic, I just don’t think is good planning, and I don’t think that’s good for the long term,” she said.
In lieu of an approved budget, the district will have to move forward planning for a budget that is the same as the previous year. This would lead to a number of layoffs in the high 20s and cuts to sports and activities, Noah Everitt, co-president of the teachers union, said.
If voters reject the proposal, Burkhardt said the district will have to draft a new budget that makes cuts to student programming, including extracurricular activities, extra help programs for students who are struggling, and staff focused on social/emotional well-being of students.
Everitt said he believed the budget was “extremely lean” and said he was hopeful it would be passed.
“South Burlington has provided a track record of excellent schools at what I believe is an affordable price,” he said. “We’re going through a pandemic, and nobody really knows how we’ll come out the other side of this, but we do know children and families will need support.”
Election Day
On top of requiring voters to wear masks inside of polling places, Donna Kinville, South Burlington’s city clerk, said the city was taking a series of steps to keep voters safe during the pandemic.
A poll worker will be stationed at the front door of the polling place to ensure all entering the facility wear masks, she said. Those that refuse will be delivered a ballot and have to vote outside.
Polling locations have been reconfigured to ensure one-way pedestrian traffic flow and floors are marked to try to ensure voters stay 6 feet apart, she said. Poll workers will wear gloves and there will be a plastic barrier in front of the check-in table, Kinville said.
Polling booths will be 6 feet apart, and only one person will be allowed at a booth at a time. Voters are encouraged to bring their own pens, she said.
Leading up to the election, the city has been encouraging voters to vote via absentee ballot, Kinville said.
