Marblehead school officials begin work on budget

MARBLEHEAD – Whatever the winter weather may bring, school officials are trying to avoid one significant drop in temperature: so far this year they are staving off a school budget freeze.That announcement came as Superintendent of Schools Greg Maass and Interim School Business Manager Kevin Meagher begin work on the Fiscal 2013 school budget, Maass?s first Marblehead budget.In the past, school business managers have called freezes on school spending midway through the fiscal year while they try to balance expenses against available budget money.Meagher has to find $44,000 for the town?s share of a Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) grant and $25,000 for a new food services sale system.However, Meagher is preparing a plan to realign the budget line items to re-balance the budget with those additions. In the meantime he said he instituted a “purchasing pause.”He said he would bring the realignment plan before committee members Dick Nohelty and Kathleen Leonardson, the School Committee budget liaison team and, if they endorse it, he will bring the realignment before the committee.Committee member Jonathan Lederman recalled past years when business managers “put the brakes on everything in the wintertime.”?This is analytical, not slamming on the brakes,” Meagher said. Overall he said he and Maass are continuing to “project that we will be able to close the year with (a balanced budget,” and concluded, “However?this review of the budget indicates that there are no discretionary dollars in the current year?s budget at this point.”