Revere Public Schools officials told the Ways and Means subcommittee that a first draft of next year’s budget showed a $7.3 million structural deficit but that proposed salary and non‑salary reductions could lower the gap to “a little bit over $3,000,000,” Superintendent Dr. Diane Kelly said.

The school department’s shortfall began with a working estimate that assumed a $5 million carryforward from this year and no use of the district reserve; that starting point produced the roughly $7.3 million figure, Dr. Kelly said. She summarized several drivers behind the structural gap: flat net school spending relative to rising local costs, exhaustion of ESSER pandemic funds, higher health‑insurance rates (estimated at about 17–19 percent), higher substitute and tuition costs for charter/choice placements, and finalized collective bargaining costs.

Why it matters: the district has limited flexibility to plug the gap. Dr. Kelly said the draft reductions — a mix of unfilled positions, targeted non‑salary cuts and operational changes — are designed to preserve direct student services where possible while reducing recurring costs.

The administration outlined the main cost reductions under consideration:

- About $4.0 million of salary savings via position eliminations and not backfilling some resignations/retirements; Superintendent staff emphasized these are cuts to positions rather than an immediate layoff list of employees and that principals are seeking reassignment opportunities where possible.

- Roughly $400,000 in non‑salary reductions, including a 40 percent cut to individual school office/instructional supply budgets, reductions to translation/interpretation line items (Lionbridge reduced by $5,000), eliminating some promotional/hiring‑fair materials and tighter controls on overtime and telecom lines after an invoice audit.

- Specific staffing changes discussed included not re‑filling an open JROTC position; three instructional‑coach positions (deeper learning, a high‑school consulting teacher, and a STEM coach) that staff say will not be replaced after departures; planned reductions in EL and special‑education positions (the administration identified roughly four positions across EL and special education for review); a reduction in health aides through attrition (from about 14–15 down to seven); and not replacing a recently retired carpenter position.

Dr. Kelly said the administration is trying to protect intervention programs (literacy/math interventionists) and avoid increasing class sizes to unsafe levels. She noted an example at Beechmont School where 40 fourth graders would be consolidated from three to two fifth‑grade sections (about 20 students per class) so that the excess position could be reassigned rather than result in a layoff.

Transportation remains the largest unresolved caveat. The city has budgeted $10 million for school transportation next year while the district’s current estimates to run the program as it operates now total about $11.6 million, leaving a roughly $1.6 million gap, Dr. Kelly and staff said. The district said it cannot legally use net‑school‑spending funds to cover transportation shortfalls that are the city’s responsibility.

Options and potential savings discussed with the committee included:

- Extending the transportation eligibility from a 1‑mile to a 2‑mile threshold for middle‑school runs, which the administration’s analysis estimated would save about $952,000 by cutting several middle‑school routes.

- Eliminating a longstanding Parkdale elementary run (implemented years earlier for traffic/crossing safety), an item the administration estimated could save roughly $300,000–$317,000 if the city installs traffic calming or crossing supports.

- Combining or consolidating routes (including coordinating special‑education runs with neighboring municipalities such as Chelsea and Winthrop) and auditing telecom/fax lines and underused PO lines for additional non‑salary savings.

Dr. Kelly said the district will press the city to negotiate “Schedule 19” cost‑allocation items (building/vehicle insurance, facilities management and similar charges the city allocates to the school department) and to meet with the school committee’s transportation subcommittee to work through the $1.6 million gap.

What was not decided: the subcommittee did not vote on any of the staffing or route changes. Members and staff agreed to pursue further analysis and negotiations with the city; a transportation subcommittee meeting with city finance and the mayor’s office was scheduled to address the funding gap as soon as possible.

Next steps: the administration said it will produce a revised budget (a working budget 3) after the Schedule 19 negotiations and the transportation subcommittee meeting, including a clearer reconciled appropriation that shows which positions will be permanently eliminated, which will remain vacant for now, and the secondary impacts on next year’s carryforward.

Ending: Dr. Kelly asked the committee to view the reductions as a time‑limited tightening that could be reversed if next year’s state net‑school‑spending figures increase; she also urged committee members to consider safety and programmatic tradeoffs before endorsing route eliminations or further staffing cuts.