FARMINGTON — The RSU 9 budget of $29.74 million passed Tuesday in a 337-193 validation vote. Residents of the 10 towns also voted to continue a two-vote process to approve school budgets.

The vote also includes a $471,031 adult education budget.

Voters from Chesterville, Farmington, New Sharon, New Vineyard, Starks, Temple, Vienna, Weld and Wilton all approved continuing the two-vote budget process for the next three years. The vote is 311-113.

It means, if it is approved, that the district will continue to hold a districtwide budget meeting to set the budget and a validation referendum later.

Farmington voters approved the budget, 115-42.

New Sharon voters tied, 24-24.

Temple approved it 19-9, Vienna approved it 15-7, and Wilton favored it 89-44. Weld voters passed it 295-179.

Industry voters favored the budgets by a 22-11 vote. Starks voters passed it 20-3.

Chesterville voters rejected the budgets in a 10-22 vote. New Vineyard voters also rejected it 7-23.

Farmington residents also passed the two-vote system by a 87-67 vote. New Sharon also passed it in a 29-20 vote and Temple approved it in an 18-10 vote. Chesterville approved the process by 22-10 vote. Vienna approved the vote process by a 12-10 vote and Wilton by a 75-57 vote.

New Vineyard narrowly approved continuing the two-step process in a 15-12 vote. Weld favored it by a 276-94 vote and Industry passed it 21-10. Starks voters approved it 14-9.

Voters from the 10 towns approved the $29.74 million school budget Thursday in a districtwide meeting at Mt. Blue High School in Farmington. The spending package reflects an increase of 2.9 percent, or $840,660, more than the current budget. The package includes about $350,000 in teacher retirement costs Gov. Paul LePage proposes to shift from the state to school districts.

The proposed $471,031 adult education budget, with $236,983 of it the local share, contains about $100,000 to move the program to the Mt. Blue High School campus in Farmington. The state will not support putting the program in the renovated high school and Foster Regional Career and Technical Education Center, Superintendent Mike Cormier said previously. The state will also stop supporting the $30,000 rent each year to allow the program to stay off campus, he said.

The move to the district campus will pay for itself within five years, he had said.

Cormier told voters Thursday that if the district receives more money from the state the school board could pass it onto taxpayers with lower assessments for each town.

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