I am writing to give a reason for taxpayers in the Kearsarge Regional School District to attend the district’s deliberative session on Saturday, Jan. 4, at 9 a.m. at the Kearsarge Regional High School. Please attend the meeting and vote to defeat a petitioned article proposing that the district budget be capped at $27,000 per student. The current budget is based on spending about $33,000 per student. The proposed, irresponsible, spending cap would have disastrous consequences for the students.

Consider: The cuts imposed by the cap would require a 17% cut in the district’s budget. The petition signers, almost all from Newbury, submitted this petition as late as they legally could and made no effort to engage parents or the public. The petition signers picked an arbitrary number have no plan for how such significant cuts would be responsibly implemented. There may be ways to reduce the KRSD budget to lessen the tax burden. This arbitrary proposal will not accomplish that. It will take creative, involved minds. Please vote to defeat this article on Jan. 4 and contribute any available resources to give KRSD students the education they desperately need and that families expect.

Kathleen Bigford

Bradford