Middleton School Committee approves $17 million FY27 budget, rejects school choice

School Committee · Meeting of April 7, 2026

Middleton School Committee unanimously approves a $17 million FY27 school budget and rejects interdistrict school choice for the tenth straight year. The committee voted without dissent Monday to forward a $17,047,903 local appropriation — a $322,507 or 1.93 percent increase — to annual town meeting on May 12 at Howe Manning Elementary School. The figure came in below the town's 2.5 percent guideline after the committee reduced its draft budget by $1,087,416 through program right-sizing, a smaller-than-expected health insurance premium increase of roughly 2.9 percent against an originally projected 20 percent, and adjustments to consumables, allowing the district to contribute $95,628 toward a broader town budget gap.

Superintendent Morrison used the public hearing to press for state reform of the Chapter 70 funding formula, citing pending legislation S-400 and noting that Middleton stands to receive only $75 per pupil in new state aid under the governor's FY27 budget — about $52,500 across the district's roughly 700 students. The committee also voted unanimously to decline participation in the school choice program, with Morrison citing a roughly $5,000 per-pupil state payment that falls well short of actual education costs.

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Source: the School Committee meeting of April 7, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.