Littleton School Committee Raises Bus and Athletic Fees After 17-Year Freeze

LITTLETON -- March 30, 2023, Littleton raises bus and athletic fees for the first time in 17 years. The School Committee voted 4 to 1 Thursday to set the per-student bus fee at $300, up from $225, with a family cap of $900, and to increase the athletic participation fee from $200 to $250 per sport, capped at $1,250 per family for the 2023-24 school year. Business Manager Steve Doherty told the committee the changes are expected to generate roughly $75,000 in additional annual revenue, falling short of the $100,000 target set when the district restructured its bus routes from three tiers to two earlier this year. A first motion setting the bus fee at $275 failed 1 to 4; the higher schedule then passed. Chair Justin Dumont argued against incremental annual escalators, saying a firm higher number now is "less stressful" for families than repeated adjustments, while member Brad Cut noted that two percent annual increases since 2006 would already have put the bus fee near $300. Athletic Director Mike Lynn, absent from the meeting, had recommended eliminating the athletic family cap entirely; the committee declined, raising it instead from $550 to the new $1,250 ceiling.