LINCOLN — Following an amendment proposed by Lincoln Community School board Chair Rebecca Otey, Lincoln residents voted to raise the elementary school spending plan by $17,400 on the floor of the annual school meeting at Burnham Hall Monday evening. The vote raised the final school budget to $2,216,122, which those at the meeting then approved.
The increase in the total LCS budget raised spending per equalized pupil from $15,217 to $15,359 and raised the percentage growth in per-pupil spending from 2.09 percent to 3 percent. The Agency of Education assigned Lincoln an Act 46 allowable growth percentage of 3 percent; so the increased budget brings no Act 46 tax penalty.
All other items on Monday night’s town and school meeting agendas passed as warned.
Townspeople approved a highway budget of $978,445, down $15,985 from last year, and a general fund budget of $341,269, up $15,720 from last year. Overall, the $1,319,715 in municipal spending approved for fiscal 2017 is $264 less than the $1,319,979 approved for the current year.
Voters approved appropriations for various Lincoln organizations, identical to last year’s, including:
•  $5,000 for Lincoln Cooperative Preschool.
•  $44,000 for the Lincoln Library.
•  $2,000 for Lincoln Sports.
•  $55,896 for the Lincoln Volunteer Fire Department.
This year voters also approved $5,000 for the Lincoln Cemetery Association, which last year did not request town funds. The association had been budgeted between $2,500 and $5,000 in recent years.
Appropriations for agencies outside of Lincoln saw a small increase to $17,760, resulting from a $115 uptick in allocations to the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program.
In Town Meeting Day voting Mark Truax retained his position as second constable against a challenge from Matthew Collins. Truax’s winning vote tally was 297 to 203.
Elections to all other town offices were unchallenged and saw incumbents returning to their offices, with some slight shuffling of seats on the Lincoln selectboard. Will Sipsey won a three-year seat to the Lincoln selectboard, James Needham won a two-year seat, and Oakley Smith won a one-year seat.
Sally Ober, Lincoln’s town clerk since 2006, won another one-year term. Lisa Truchon, first elected treasurer in 2012, returns for another year as treasurer.
Lincoln Community School board Chair Rebecca Otey won another three-year term. Vice Chair Mary Beth Stilwell returns for another two-year term.
Voters across the Addison Northeast Supervisory Union approved $13,389,914 for Mount Abraham Union Middle/High School. In 2015, by contrast, voters rejected two proposed Mount Abe budgets before passing a $13.95 million spending plan in June. This year the Mount Abe budget passed out of the gate with 2,703 yes votes and 1,306 against. Voters in the 17 Addison County towns (including Lincoln) that send students to the Patricia A. Hannaford Career Center approved that institution’s budget proposal of $3,521,263.