Town committee cuts $834,000 from the school budget; schools ask voters for part of it back

What happened

The town's Committee on Appropriations reduced the School Committee's 2026-2027 budget by $834,000, a 1.5% cut, taking the requested increase from 4% down to 2.5% in two steps. Rather than fight for the whole amount, the School Committee voted to put a ballot question to Barrington voters asking for $278,100, the last 0.5%, back. In June the committee approved the reconciled budget of $70,705,000, down from the $71,539,000 it had adopted.

Why it matters to families

$834,000 is roughly 1.2% of everything Barrington spends on its schools, and where it comes out of decides which staff and programmes survive next year.

The evidence

The April 16, 2026 approved minutes record the chair stating that the Committee on Appropriations reduced the School Committee's budget by $834,000, representing a 1.5% decrease, and a 4-0 vote to put forward a ballot question to increase the appropriation by $278,100. The June 11, 2026 approved minutes record the budget analyst presenting the reconciliation, with an approved budget of $71,539,000 and a Committee on Appropriations recommendation of $70,705,000, and a 4-0 vote approving the amended budget. The outcome of the ballot question does not appear in the collected record.

The source