PARIS — While three towns opposed it, the $54.4 million budget for the Paris-based Maine School Administrative District 17 passed with 56% of voters voting yes.

The total vote from the eight town was 1,145 in favor to 906 against.

Residents of Harrison, Oxford and West Paris voted against the budget.

For the fiscal year starting July 1, MSAD 17 operational expenses are projected to increase 7.9%, in large part to increasing costs and educator wage increases, but also due to a drop of more than $1 million in state funding.

Increased operational costs, factored with a loss of $1.04 million in Maine Department of Education funding, resulted in a potential 14% spending increase.

According to DOE calculations, property valuations for the Oxford Hills region have increased by $433 million.

“This budget is about managing loss of revenue,” Superintendent Heather Manchester told residents about the cuts from the state during her presentation at the validation meeting last month. “It was primarily due to a $433 million increase of property values in the district. The state has said, ‘oh your property values have gone up. Therefore, you can raise more money locally to put toward local education.’ We know that’s not true, but unfortunately that’s how the state’s funding formula works.

“We’ve also had a slight decline in our enrollment, which reduced some of our subsidy. We have a $110,000 decrease in state contribution, and a $934,000 increase in the required local share. The state shifted money they would have provided in the past onto the locals share.”

District administrators and the school board’s budget committee put forth the $54.4 million budget after cutting $3 million in operations and staffing.

Fifteen positions have been eliminated and $200,000 was taken from special education. Expenses in systems technology spending will be reduced by $139,000 by cutting staff hours and updating less network cabling in the high school than planned.

Another $1.4 million was cut from the facilities maintenance plan to replace all building windows next year. Instead, the work will be carried out over a period of three years, prioritizing those in the worst condition first.

And $400,000 in operations will be saved by closing Waterford Memorial School and transferring 76 Waterford and Harrison students from pre-K through second grade to Harrison Elementary School.

Vote totals by towns: Harrison 116-126; Hebron 26-13; Norway 301-122; Otisfield 82-74; Oxford 262-271; Paris 271-219; Waterford 50-21; West Paris 37-60.