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Feb 28, 2007 6:45 pm US/Eastern
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New School Reimbursement System Has Some Worried
by Lisa Hughes
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
One of the most expensive investments a community makes is in its schools and in Massachusetts a lot of them need work.
The state has always paid a big part of school construction costs but in the reimbursement system is changing.
The state says it's better but some people are afraid it will cost taxpayers more.
"The schools' condition is poor to very poor," said Lea Anderson of the Wayland High School Building Committee.
There's no candy coating conditions at Wayland High.
"We had a chunk of concrete fall off an overhang in a high traffic area last spring," Anderson said.
So with the state's help Wayland wants to replace the school.
"We couldn't have had worse luck in terms of timing on this project," Anderson said
That's because for four years there's been a moratorium on approving new projects for reimbursement while old ones are paid off and a new agency takes over.
Why the change? Some people say the old system was a mess and that the state can no longer afford to pay as much.
The moratorium will be lifted this summer but some communities are worried.
"We expect there will be a slightly less reimbursement across the board," said Massachusetts Treasurer Tim Cahill.
Communities used to enjoy 50 to 90 percent reimbursement rates. Now the rates 40 to 80 percent.
The state will also tighten its' oversight, and strictly control what is, and is not, reimbursable.
"We're not saying you have to do it our way....we're just saying if you don't do it our way you have to pay for the difference," said Cahill
Wayland expects its reimbursement rate to drop from sixty percent to forty. And with inflation the project could cost thirty-percent more than a few years ago.
"To the taxpayers of Wayland it means the property tax will have to cover, you know, more of the cost of the building project than it did in the past," Anderson said.
There's even concern about projects approved under the old system. In Somerville the mayor says inflation has increased the cost of this project by nine million dollars and, he says, the state won't cover it.
"They changed the rules in the middle of the game, and the municipalities and communities like Somerville are left holding the bag," said Mayor Joe Curtatone.
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