TURNER — School Administrative District 52 directors received the 2016 audit report Thursday evening, revealing the district has $17.13 million in net assets.

It’s a $636,032 increase from 2015.

However, Bruce Nadeau, senior account from RHR Smith & Company, pointed out the district has more capital assets this year. The new assets include a lease for energy upgrades to the school buildings and equipment, such as buses.

“You have to think about the infrastructure and how you’re going to maintain it. That’s going to be one of the biggest challenges going forward,” Nadeau told directors.

Maintaining assets includes ensuring that buildings, school grounds, parking lots and equipment are in good condition.

In order to build a sustainable budget, Nadeau suggested the board closely match day-to-day revenue with day-to-day expenses, including costs to maintain assets.

The district also has a general fund of $1.86 million, which is $411,382 more than in 2015.

In other business, the board decided not to hold the districtwide 2017-18 budget vote during the statewide primary and referendum in June. Instead, it will be held in May as usual.

“Earlier is better,” Turner director Richard Gross said.

Holding the vote at the same time as the primary doesn’t give enough time to order equipment, such as buses, get capital repair projects out to bid before the summer, and hold a second budget vote, if needed, before the fiscal year ends June 30, directors said.

The cost of holding the budget vote separate from the statewide primary is $1,200.

“The benefit that we gain from that cost annually is a significant amount to that,” Business Manager Deborah Roberts said.

In other business, Superintendent Kimberly Brandt recently spoke to superintendents from the Oxford Hills School District in Paris and the Telstar School District in Bethel about the possibility of developing a regional autism behavior report. Brandt is looking at costs and needs associated with that.

“The next steps are to have our social care directors get together and discuss what the needs will look like and what students we might begin to service,” Brandt said, “and continue that conversation to see if this is something we think we would be interested in.”

The board voted 8-0 to nominate Michelle Grimbilas as the Turner Primary School and Turner Elementary School special education teacher.

The board approved the donation of two laptops from IDEXX to Tripp Middle School’s Robotics Club.