ROXBURY, Vt. (WCAX) – The community of Roxbury is taking legal action against the Montpelier Roxbury Public Schools district over how its Town Meeting Day school budget vote was conducted.
The Roxbury Selectboard chair says a budget informational meeting was held after voting began and was only available online, preventing voters from having access to the information before the start of voting, which they say ultimately led to the failed budget on Town Meeting Day.
In the lawsuit, the selectboard wants the court to cancel the upcoming budget revote and rescind the decision to close the school, reinstating the original March 5th school budget for voter approval. That rejected budget would have resulted in a 24% property tax increase.
“Voters deserve accurate and complete information when they go to the polls. Unfortunately, the Montpelier-Roxbury School District did not provide that, the result of which was a failed budget vote on March 5. Voters across the district deserve the opportunity to cast their ballots with the entire picture, provided in the mandatory information session, ahead of the vote,” Roxbury Selectboard Chair Jon Guiffre said in a statement.
District officials did not respond immediately to comment on the lawsuit.