Bow school district leaders are seeking a $4.1 million increase to fund school operations, a 6% jump in the budget that residents described as difficult to absorb amid current economic conditions.

A major factor driving the proposed increase is a 16% rise in health insurance costs.

Michael Habif, a resident, acknowledged that healthcare costs are rising nationwide, but he called it “radical” to ask taxpayers to cover those increases when residents are already facing higher living costs. 

He said that the district should consider cuts in other areas before raising taxes.

“My health care costs went up dramatically. My food costs went up dramatically. My salary has not gone up dramatically, so I don’t expect my taxes to go up dramatically,” he said at the budget public hearing on Thursday. “We can’t just give revenue to the school when there isn’t any more to give.”

If voters approve the school budget and all warrant articles, residents could see a total increase of about 7% to their school portion of the tax rate, bringing the total rate to $14.73, which is about $5,900 a year on a $400,000 home.

Chris Nicolopoulos, a member of the budget committee, said the group worked closely with the school to reduce the proposed budget as much as possible without affecting the quality of education or the student experience. The school district’s budget originally started with an 8.4% increase.

“I’m as conservative as a guy as Bow has,” he said. “But when you start looking at the next level of cuts, they start hurting our students.”

He said eliminating more expenses could have meant getting rid of the Nordic team, scaling back special education support, cutting employees’ workweeks to four days, and eliminating the school resource officer. 

“The dollars for each one of those is not enough to change my mind,” he said. 

Town budget

The town’s operating budget is $12.4 million, representing an increase of 5.4% over the current spending plan.

While the tax rate impact remains flat, the main drivers of the budget include funding for a new firefighter position, a new police position, increases in solid waste–related expenses, and higher personnel costs.

The municipal tax rate is $4.62, which is the same as last year.