On Tuesday, Reading Selectmen Pick a Number

If last summer's Board of Selectmen's survey is your guide, 60.69 percent of Reading residents who voted no in the October 2016 override did so in part because the number was too high. It wasn't the only reason the override failed, but the $7.5 million request was certainly a factor.

So what should it be this year? The schools have asked for an additional $2.436 million plus benefits while the town has a potential wish list of almost $1.8 million. That means an override request on April 3 of $4.236 plus the benefit costs that would push the total closer to $4.7 million. And what effect will the news that State Aid is down about $178,000 for FY19 have on the process?

Tuesday at the Reading Memorial High School Library the speculation comes to an end with a vote by the Reading Board of Selectmen. John Arena, Barry Berman, Andy Friedmann, John Halsey, and Dan Ensminger can say yes to the full request by town and schools ... or go shopping. For example, if the selectmen draw the line at the first 10 items in Town Manager Bob LeLacheur's request, it would give the town nine additional fire/police hires along with an assistant town accountant for an override request of a little over $1 million. Is that enough, or do the selectmen want to add item No. 16, Library Sunday hours, at a cost of an additional $63,125? How about No. 11, a software training coordinator for an additional $82,500?

As for the schools, there's no shopping to be done. The selectmen can only drop the override number if they wish. They can't tell the School Committee how to spend it. Should the number be less than the request, the School Committee will decide how to spend it at their Feb. 5 meeting.

There are plenty of opinions out there, and Patch is filled with them today. But at least to start, the only thing that matters is item 5a on the Selectmen's Tuesday agenda: "Discuss and Vote Override."