Ashburnham-Westminster Regional School Committee members met Wednesday in a special meeting to take up two budgetary issues before the override vote on Tuesday, Aug. 14.

Committee members unanimously approved a resolution that states the committee will return any unanticipated revenue from the state to the towns if the override passes on Tuesday. The committee members took the action with very little discussion the basic premise.

"The last time we asked for an override we passed something similar," said School Committee member Keith Glenny.

Glenny added that after that resolution passed the district returned more than $300,000 to the two towns.

The committee members said they should have passed this resolution earlier in the budget season but decided that it was not too late to pass it a week before the override election.

Voters in Ashburnham and Westminster will head to the polls on Tuesday to determine if they want to fund additional money for the school budget through a Proposition 2 ½ override.

Committee members also used their meeting as a time to discuss comments they had heard from the public on the override and to talk with the principals of Oakmont and Overlook schools and the athletic director about the effects of fees and elimination of programs.

One of the issues the committee discussed was the money that is in a line item of the budget called "contractual obligations." The money in those line items is more than $500,000 and could go to fund any contracts in the district. The committee is in the middle of negotiations with the teachers and the three other unions in the district.

"It is my hope that money is in excess, far in excess, of what we need," Glenny said.

Committee members said that it is the fiscally responsibly way to handle the budget.

The teacher's contract expired on June 30 and negotiations are continuing. Both sides are prohibited from discussing the negotiations due to federal law.

Committee members urged voters to learn about all the issues over the course of the next seven days and they invited residents to call them or the administration.

"There will be an effect in every classroom in the district," said Committee Chairman David Christianson.

In other business:

The committee discussed the possible effects to the school district's co-curricular activities and athletic department if fees are imposed or programs are eliminated.

The committee did not make any decision on Wednesday night. If the override fails the committee will meet on Wednesday, Aug. 15.

If the override fails, at most, the district's budget for the programs will be 50 percent funded.

Oakmont Principal David Uminski said he would not see the high school functioning without class advisors, student council, National Honor Society, Peer Leaders, the yearbook, the Web master and the student account fund manager. The stipends for the advisors for these positions total about $35,000.

Uminski also listed 21 other clubs, organizations and activities in which there are teacher stipends associated as costs.

Overlook Principal Brenda Houle listed 14 activities, of which she said the Quick Stop Café was necessary to continue because it is part of special-education students' required programs. She said she couldn't make a decision to keep or eliminate other activities.

"I can't tell one (group of students) they are more important than another," she said.

Athletic Director David LaRoche said he tried to look at keeping the programs competitive and the students safe in creating his possible elimination lists.

"We don't have a civic center. We don't have a boys' club. We have Oakmont," LaRoche said. "We're going to put these kids out of athletics and I don't know where they'll end up."

He said he would eliminate the three freshman teams, the junior varsity ice hockey team, remove the school from the joint wrestling team with Montachusett Regional Vocational School and Fitchburg High School, as well as eliminating the golf team, indoor track, middle school cheering and combine boys and girls tennis.

LaRoche also asked that all gate receipts go directly back into the athletic programming and that a $100 fee be instituted.

"We'd basically destroy what we have created," he said but it would preserve something in the worst-case scenario.

Glenny asked LaRoche, if the override fails, to create a list of recommendations if they athletic department received 50 percent funding and no fees.