Nahant School Committee hears three FY27 budget options, including $5.2 million override version

NAHANT — March 3, 2026 — Nahant School Committee weighs three FY27 budget versions while facing an unbudgeted special education crisis. Superintendent Robert Liebow presented options ranging from a level-service budget of $5,046,154 — a 3.85 percent increase over the current year's $4,854,441 — to a $5,237,403 override version tied to a $1 million town-wide override that would add roughly $700 to the annual tax bill on a median-value home. The committee also confronted an immediate fiscal emergency: a state-funded residential education program is closing, and the cost of transitioning one Nahant student to a private provider could reach $462,000 for the remainder of this year alone, with no district reserve to absorb it. "That's what is happening," Liebow said of the state's posture toward affected districts. "You're on your own." The Finance Committee reviews the school and town budgets Thursday, March 5, at 6:30 p.m., and the school committee votes on a new bus contract at its March 24 meeting.