The school committee of the Farmington River Regional School District is now just one step from completing its 2-1/2 year effort to revise the division of costs between Sandisfield and our neighboring town of Otis.

At a Special Town Meeting February 28, with a vote of 53-0 Sandisfield accepted the proposed revision of the Regional District Agreement (RDA).

The single remaining step in the process is a vote at a similar Special Town Meeting in Otis March 25. For the RDA revision to go into effect, both towns must cast a majority vote in favor.

This is perhaps the most important choice Otis and Sandisfield have faced in decades.

The RDA being revised is the original 1992 agreement that set up each town's financial responsibilities for the school.

The revision would make the contributions more sustainable for Sandisfield, which, for many years, according to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), has been paying significantly more than what it can afford.

The Good News Estimate

Acceptance of the RDA would result in a property tax increase to Otis residents and a decrease for Sandisfield residents.

The good news is that the revised numbers released by the School Committee at their March 3 meeting were considerably lower than what the committee had previously indicated. This was because the earlier numbers had been based on this year's (FY25) budget.

Instead, applying next year's (FY26) budget numbers on the new RDA, according to the committee, the average Otis property tax bill was projected to increase by only $36, which is just $3 per month.

The main reason for this big change is that in the numbers DESE recently published regarding what each town could reasonably afford for education to be used in next year's budget process, Sandisfield's number went up while Otis' went down. The new apportionment method then did its job correctly and reduced the impact of the new RDA on Otis for next year.

Against the Grain

Voting for a tax increase of any kind may well be against the grain for Otis taxpayers. But it may be in their benefit to do so.

If Otis rejects the revision, Sandisfield may follow through on its motion to withdraw from the district and send its elementary schoolchildren to other Berkshire schools.

As the Sandisfield Select Board wrote on January 31, the board "sincerely hopes the amended RDA passes in Otis. But if it doesn't, Sandisfield has many excellent education alternatives it is prepared to pursue for which the economics to Sandisfield would be similar to those under the new RDA."

Should that happen, the costs to Otis taxpayers to maintain its own school would be dramatically higher than any increase in costs that would result from the revised RDA.

Endorsements, Pro and Con

The revised RDA has been endorsed by the Farmington River Regional Educators Association (employee union), the FRRSD School Committee (7-0), and the Sandisfield Select Board. As previously reported, it was pre-approved by DESE before the Special Town Meetings were scheduled.

Two letters opposing the revision appeared in the most recent issue of the Otis Observer.

In the first, the Otis Select Board expressed concern about the town's financial viability and whether the town could afford other public services if this revision passed.

The second letter, unsigned and under the heading of Special to the Otis Observer, included a comment that Sandisfield would have to provide a $10 million bond in the event it withdraws from the district. School committee members, administrators, and others who have been working on this issue report that they know of no such bond and question its source. The Times, which has published at least ten articles on the RDA process over the past two years has not previously seen a reference to this requirement. An email sent February 27 to the Observer's "Hello" address questioning the source of that statement has, as of March 4, gone unanswered.

Despite their disapproval of the proposed revision, both the Otis Select Board and the Observer seem to agree that the RDA should be updated after three decades. They simply believe that after 2-1/2 years of effort the School Committee should begin its work all over again.

We Recommend "Yes"

Meanwhile, school enrollment across the Berkshires is declining. Locally, there are only about 100 elementary students at Farmington River, about 60 from Otis and 40 from Sandisfield. The trend across the Berkshires seems to indicate even more consolidation of schools.

The Times recommends a "yes" vote at the Otis Special Town Meeting, to match the vote from Sandisfield.

This would ensure the continuation of the FRRSD as a vital part of our shared community.

As the Sandisfield Select Board summarized in its January 31 letter: "Sandisfield has waited patiently, and made an enormous effort, rooted in compromise, to achieve an outcome that is fair to all, as is reflected in the amended RDA. But it's well past time for a decision."