BRISTOL — Voters in the Newfound Area School District defeated the proposed $26.48 million operating budget for fiscal year 2025-26, which leaves the district to work within the default budget of $26.25 million next year.

The school board has the option under RSA 40:13 of calling a special school district meeting to seek passage of a different budget figure, but with the difference between the proposed and adopted budgets being only $230,983, is unlikely to take that step.

The budget article failed by six votes, 694-700. Bristol and New Hampton voters supported the proposed budget, 240-152 and 200-130, respectively, but the other two towns rejected it — 133-154 in Alexandria and 121-264 in Danbury.

Those four towns were the only ones to vote on the Newfound ballot, since the three other towns currently part of the Newfound Area School District — Bridgewater, Groton, and Hebron — will be part of the new Pasquaney School District after June 30.

Whether it was the relatively small difference between the budget choices, concerns going forward about only four towns shouldering the costs of Newfound education, or as a message to the school district budget committee which recommended the administration’s budget without much effort to understand the spending proposals, the budget article did not garner the kind of support district taxpayers have historically provided.

The budget process was difficult this year because School Administrative Unit 4 lost access to the Newfound district’s financial data in a November 2023 cyber attack. Through the remainder of the 2023-24 fiscal year, and the beginning of the 2024-25 fiscal year, the business office was keeping track of spending on consumer spreadsheets, while trying to reconstruct the lost records. The district was unable to determine the year-end spending picture for 2023-24, which held up the setting of the tax rate, and made crafting a budget for the 2025-26 fiscal year difficult.

Audits for fiscal years 2022-23 and 2023-24 are scheduled to take place this year. Meanwhile, new financial software has been installed. Because it differs from the previous version, the staff had to put in extra time learning the nuances of the new software, and even worked weekends to become proficient.

Budget information was still being revised at the time of the required public hearing, so many of the residents’ questions about the budget and the effect of the three towns leaving remained unanswered until later. Meanwhile, members of the Newfound Area School District Budget Committee signed off on the budget without seeking those answers or taking a close look at proposed spending.

Newfound Superintendent Paul Hoiriis has not indicated what he will recommend to the school board to meet the $230,983 reduction required by the default budget.

Elsewhere on the ballot, voters agreed, 724-671, to divert as much as $450,000 from any undesignated fund balance at the end of this year into the expendable trust fund for building maintenance. Bristol supported the spending, 249-132, and New Hampton agreed, 206-126; but Alexandria’s vote was 139-157, and Danbury’s was 130-256.

Voters also approved, 734-648, the placement of as much as $100,000 from the fund balance into the expendable trust fund for technology. Again, Bristol (250-130) and New Hampton (215-114) supported the measure, while Alexandria (133-153) and Danbury (136-251) opposed the spending.

An article to approve an estimated payment of $391,459 for the cost items in a one-year collective bargaining agreement between the Newfound Area School Board and the Newfound Teachers Union passed, 804-586, with only Danbury objecting, 165-222. Alexandria favored it, 155-137; Bristol 257-124; and New Hampton, 227-103.

The towns unanimously supported an article to restructure the school board to add a fifth at-large member beginning next year. Aimed at avoiding the possibility of a tie vote, the measure passed, 1,051-328. The breakdown is: Alexandria, 207-79; Bristol 316-61; Danbury 257-130; and New Hampton, 271-58.

Voters also unanimously supported a tuition agreement with the Pasquaney School District which would allow students currently enrolled in both districts’ schools to continue attending after the split, if they wish. The overall vote was 864-397, with Alexandria voting 198-88; Bristol 201-72; Danbury 211-167; and New Hampton, 254-70.

There were two petitioned articles regarding the district’s 2% tax cap. The first, which would have rescinded the cap, failed, 491-866, with Alexandria voting 88-194; Bristol 159-214; Danbury 96-284; and New Hampton, 148-174. The second, which would have raised the cap from 2% to 5%, failed 469-882, with Alexandria voting 87-194; Bristol 150-221; Danbury 89-291; and New Hampton, 143-176.

District races were uncontested, with Moderator Edward “Ned” Gordon receiving 1,129 votes; Dennis Fitton receiving 976 votes to serve as Alexandria’s member of the school board; and Shevaun Caseault receiving 938 votes to return as Alexandria’s representative to the budget committee.