Baldacci likely to use budget as leverage for district consolidation
Times Record, January 2, 2007

(excerpt) Despite the lack of official details, many expect Baldacci to use the two-year state budget — which will contain close to $2 billion in state aid for education — to either force school districts to consolidate administrative functions with their neighbors or pay for their independence on the local level.

Several high-profile reports, including ones from the national Brookings Institution, the Maine Children's Alliance and the Maine Board of Education, are calling for fewer school districts in the state to save money.

"I'm really not privy to what he has in his budget," said Sen. Libby Mitchell, D-Vassalboro, the new Senate majority leader and last year's chairwoman of the Education Committee. "I do know he's interested in reducing the cost of administration.

"We've dealt with this issue over the years, but people have chosen to continue to operate the way they are," she said. "They want their local school boards."

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