The annual budget process is officially underway, and last week’s joint meeting with the Selectboard and Finance Committee marked a critical first step in planning for Fiscal Year 2027. These initial conversations are essential for setting the tone, and a key takeaway from this first meeting is the language being used to frame the upcoming budget. This language has brought a central, challenging question into sharp focus for our schools.

The Selectboard has stated its goal is to “preserve the core educational services…while managing the budgetary impact to no more than a 3% increase.”

This brings up a crucial distinction. In municipal finance, there is a difference between funding “core services” and funding “level services.” “Level services” means providing the exact same staff and services as the previous year. Due to contractual salary increases and rising costs for things like transportation and special education, a level service budget almost always requires more than a 3% increase.

The term “core educational services,” however, is not clearly defined. What one person considers “core,” another may not. By pairing this subjective term with a firm 3% cap, the Selectboard is signaling that a true “level services” budget is likely out of reach. This framework effectively asks the School Committee to define what is “core” and, by extension, what programs and services may need to be reduced or eliminated to meet the 3% target.

This is a significant challenge, especially when we consider that our district cut 18 staff positions just this year. When we discuss maintaining services, we are already starting from a deficit.

So where do we go from here?

We reached a practical agreement to move the process forward. The town will use a 3% increase as a placeholder for the school budget, which enables the Town Manager to present a balanced budget this December. This sensible step provides Superintendent Klingaman and her team the time required to develop a single, comprehensive, needs-based budget, as required by state law.

This isn’t a period of waiting, but of active work. Dr. Klingaman will present her budget to the School Committee, kicking off a deliberative public process of presentations and workshops from late October through early December. This will culminate in a community public hearing on December 10.

This transparent process will give the School Committee and the entire community a clear look at the actual costs required to deliver the education our students deserve. It allows us to focus on a real budget based on student needs, not a theoretical exercise constrained by an arbitrary cap.

I left the meeting with a clear sense of the work ahead. We must now dig into the details, have honest and difficult conversations about what our community truly defines as “core,” and decide how to best fund the services that ensure Duxbury remains a town we are all proud to call home.

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Note: The views and opinions expressed here are my own and do not reflect the official policies, positions, or endorsements of the Duxbury School Committee. For official information about Duxbury Public Schools and the Duxbury School Committee, please visit duxbury.k12.ma.us.