Hanson Faces $262,669 School Budget Shortfall, Special Town Meeting Called
Select Board schedules June 25 meeting to consider additional funds from free cash to avoid district entering 1/12th budget
HANSON - June 10 - The Hanson Select Board votes to hold a special town meeting on June 25 to address a $262,669 shortfall in the Whitman-Hanson Regional School District assessment. The meeting will take place at Whitman-Hanson Regional High School.
Town Administrator Lisa Green explains that the school committee voted on June 4 to reassess the town a total of $15,775,031, which exceeds the $15,512,363 approved at Hanson's May town meeting.
"We need to appropriate prior to July 1 to avoid the Whitman-Hanson regional school district from going into a 1/12 budget," Green tells the board.
Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett notes that the school committee debated whether to reduce the assessment to the two towns and made significant cuts, primarily to non-student-facing roles.
"There will be a significant amount of cuts, primarily not what you would call student-facing, so not necessarily teachers, like boots on the ground, but a lot of other supporting roles, which does impact the teachers and the education," FitzGerald-Kemmett says.
The board discusses the timing of the special town meeting, noting they have 45 days from receiving the new assessment to hold a meeting but must post notice 14 days in advance. The board expresses concern about achieving a quorum during the high vacation period in early July.
FitzGerald-Kemmett emphasizes the urgency of acting before July 1, as town meeting cannot access free cash after that date without recertification.
"If we wait until after July 1, town meeting cannot touch the free cash at that meeting because we have to certify our free cash if we're not able to touch the money after July 1, free cash for this purpose," she explains.
Superintendent Jeff Szymaniak, who attends the meeting, warns that if the town fails to appropriate the additional funds before July 1, the district would have to operate on a 1/12th budget, which would mean a cut of approximately $3.37 million.
"That's a $3.37 million hit without unemployment. And it's actually potentially up to another 32 pink slips going out," Szymaniak says. "I can't issue a contract because I won't be able to make payroll if we don't have a budget by August 26."
He adds that during a similar situation during COVID, the district lost about $65,000 in unemployment costs over one month.
Town Accountant Eric Kinsherf confirms that after the special town meeting, if approved, the town would have $685,000 in unappropriated free cash that would roll over when recertified next year.
The board votes unanimously to open the special town meeting warrant, place and recommend the article to appropriate the additional funds, close the warrant, and set the meeting for June 25 at the high school.
The board discusses the need to ensure a quorum of 100 registered voters attends the meeting. Green commits to publicizing the meeting through social media, the senior center, and the library.
"We'll do everything on our end. We have the warrant ready to go to be posted tomorrow, and we will get it all over all our social media, all the platforms possible," Green says.
* Approved a $1,000 stipend per election event for the town clerk position
* Endorsed a partnership between the Energy Committee and HomeWorks Energy for the MassSave program
* Approved the FY26 Select Board meeting calendar
* Voted to use Indian Head Maquan Elementary School for Hanson Day on September 27, 2025, with a rain date of October 4, 2025
* Delegated designer selection for the potential library project to the Library Design and Planning Committee
* Approved use of Hanson Town Green for a Girl Scout troop fundraising ice cream social on August 22, 2025
* Waived a $3,905 permit fee for the Hanson Senior Center modular building project
* Approved Town Administrator Lisa Green's request to carry over three vacation days and sell back 10 vacation days
The board also receives updates on ARPA-funded projects, including the Pratt Place culvert replacement, Fire Department transport ambulance acquisition, Food Pantry improvements, and Highway Department space repairs.
Green announces that subsurface utility engineering surveys will be conducted on the Abington-Rockland water line the week of June 16, which may cause minimal traffic delays but no road closures.
The meeting concludes with the board voting to adjourn to executive session to discuss litigation, collective bargaining, and personnel matters.