Timberlane to decide what to do with $2.25 million surplus

Sept. 30--PLAISTOW -- The Timberlane Regional School Board will decide what to do with $2.3 million Thursday.

The money, according to Superintendent Earl Metzler, was refunded from health-care costs paid to HealthTrust, a health insurance pool that serves school employees and municipalities across the state.

The money is the result of a lengthy legal battle.

In 2012, the New Hampshire Bureau of Securities Regulation ordered the Local Government Center to refund $52 million to organizations that participated in the HealthTrust insurance pool for public workers and retirees.

The bureau found LGC violated state law by improperly collecting money and keeping unnecessary surplus funds.

Earlier this year, the New Hampshire Supreme Court upheld the bureau's decision.

Other districts and municipalities received money, too, according to Peter Curro, chairman of the HealthTrust's Board of Directors.

"They're happening lately because we're finishing court orders and legal issues that have been going on for a while," said Curro, who is also the business administrator for the Londonderry School District.

In the past, Curro said, when surpluses were found, they were just used the following year to lower premium payments. Now, they are sent out to HealthTrust members as checks.

In June, Timberlane officials predicted they would receive $1.9 million in health-care refunds. At that time, school officials voted to use the money to reduce taxpayers' burden.

The Timberlane Regional School District includes Plaistow, Atkinson, Danville and Sandown.

But last week district officials found out they were getting an additional $350,000, Metzler said.

At a School Board meeting scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Thursday, officials will decide whether to use the entire $2.25 million to reduce the tax burden or keep $350,000 in reserve.

Reserve or retention funds can only be used in emergencies, according to School Board member Peter Bealo. In fact, withdrawing any reserve funds requires permission from the state Department of Education.

Bealo said he would like to keep $100,000 in reserve.

"You can't plan on spending every penny," he said. "It's just prudent planning."

If the district puts the entire $2.3 million to help offset the cost to the towns, it will have an impact on the 2014 tax rate, according to Timberlane business administrator George Stokinger.

He said tax rates are in the middle of being set for the towns.

But even if the all the money is used to offset taxes, three of the district's four towns would see a property tax increase.

When the School Board initially agreed to put $1.9 million back into the budget in June, Stokinger said, Atkinson's property tax rate would drop 23 cents for every $1,000 of assessed property value compared to the tax rate last year. Danville's tax rate would raise $1.43, Plaistow's would raise 29 cents and Sandown would raise $1.22 cents.

But if the School Board decides to put the entire $2.3 million back into the budget, Atkinson's property tax rate would drop 32 cents for every $1,000 of assessed property value, Danville's would rise $1.23, Plaistow's would rise 17 cents and Sandown would raise $1.03 cents.

School districts have the biggest impact on property tax rates.

"It's a number of factors that go in there," Stokinger said of the property tax rate.

The cost towns pay to Timberlane is calculated by the average daily membership of students, the more students means the more a town has to pay to Timberlane, he said.

"Our single point of focus was to get the lowest tax rate possible in all four towns," Metzler said.

Deciding what to do with the $350,000 has incidentally brought two school officials closer together.

Metzler's recommendation was to put the entire $2.25 million into lower assessments for the towns.

Another School Board member, Donna Green of Sandown was also in favor of lowering town assessments as much as possible.

"I believe it should all go tot he taxpayers," she said. "School taxes have gone up quite a lot."

Metzler, along with other School Board members, have clashed with Green before about budget issues and comments Green makes on her blog.

Some members are simply waiting for more information and weighing their options.

"I don't have an opinion yet," Plaistow School Board member Susan Sherman said.

The School Board is expected to vote at their meeting Thursday, Chairwoman Nancy Steenson said.

She has not yet decided on what the best route is for the $350,000 surplus, she said there are both pros and cons on both sides.

"Either option is a good one," she said.

___

(c)2014 The Eagle-Tribune (North Andover, Mass.)

Visit The Eagle-Tribune (North Andover, Mass.) at www.eagletribune.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services