Spencer-East Brookfield School Committee Approves Nearly $600,000 in Emergency Mid-Year Budget Fixes

PEPPERELL — April 15, 2026 — Spencer-East Brookfield School Committee votes to patch fiscal 2026 budget with nearly $600,000 in transfers and reserve funds. The committee unanimously approved $297,102 in mid-year line-item transfers and a $300,638 draw from excess-and-deficiency funds to cover a 66-percent jump in retiree health insurance, $136,000 in unanticipated electricity costs at the new David Prouty High School, $43,354 in property insurance increases, and a $36,000 mandatory upgrade to the district's Siemens energy management software. Business Administrator Gary Souter noted that declining charter school tuition charges — a result of the state's March enrollment reconciliation — provided unexpected relief, saying "that was a surprise to me as well." Superintendent Dr. Jeff Harhee warned that the fiscal 2027 budget, which cuts more than $1 million district-wide, will leave the district with only two instructional coaches in September, down from a planned four, while an estimated $30,000 additional cut to Title I funding remains unconfirmed. Spencer residents face a Proposition 2½ override vote on May 12, and a Select Board representative identified as Dr. Hicks urged all committee members to campaign publicly, calling it the district's best remaining option after years of cuts — and the first such vote since a successful 2006 override.