Voters in Barre approved their new school budget Tuesday on their fourth attempt — the final school district in Vermont to pass a budget this year.
The Times Argus is reporting that voters of the Barre Unified Union School District passed the nearly $57 million budget by a margin of 1,802-1,321.
Local school officials in Barre had cut over $2 million from the budget they originally proposed to voters in March.
The Barre school district includes two communities: the historically working-class Barre City and the more affluent and suburban Barre Town. Longstanding divisions between the two municipalities were on full display during the budget process, where a bloc of school board members from Barre Town continually asked for further cuts.
Last week, Gov. Phil Scott endorsed the latest spending plan for schools in his hometown.
"I think they've done a lot of good work and made some difficult choices," Scott said. "And I personally, I'm not going to tell Barre how to vote. But if I was voting in Barre I would vote for the budget. I think it's time to move forward."
The approved budget is expected to result in an average tax increase of 3% in Barre Town, and 1% in Barre City.
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