Norwich — The Board of Education voted unanimously Thursday to approve an $83 million 2018-19 budget with a 9 percent, or $6.88 million, spending increase, cutting less than $12,000 and standing by comments last week that it’s “an honest budget” and cannot be cut.

The board last week issued a statement that it would take the city to court if the City Council fails to approve “sufficient funds” needed after years of budget cuts.

The budget will be submitted to City Manager John Salomone, who will present his budget to the City Council April 2.

Tuition for high school and special education students is the highest overall cost item, totaling $34.2 million, or 41 percent of the total budget. Salaries at $26 million make up 31.3 percent of the budget.

The board started discussions by refusing to cut classroom teachers.

When tackling potential cuts, new board member Patricia Staley said the board needed to make some cuts, even if they were just minor “gestures.” She proposed cutting advertising, central office supplies and “other supplies” for a total savings of $11,800.

“I appreciate the sentiment, but we just wasted this much time cutting $12,000 out of an $83 million budget,” board member Dennis Slopak said. “Nobody cares. ... We made a statement last time that said this is an honest budget. I believe it is.”

Staley countered that the board had to try to cut something. She made other suggestions, but those items ended up being funded by grants. Slopak and board member Joyce Werden and Chairwoman Yvette Jacaruso voted against the $11,800 cuts.

Other board members offered little comment on the budget, supporting the original package as the best the board could propose, now totaling $83,062,353.

During public comment at the start of the meeting, Alderwoman Stacy Gould said she objected to comments made at last week’s School Budget Committee meeting — when Jacaruso read the statement threatening court action. Gould said board members made comments at that meeting that the City Council “doesn’t care about education.” Gould is the council liaison to the school board.

“I left that meeting pretty upset,” she said, “because I take my role on the Norwich City Council very seriously, as I believe all the others do. Over the years, the City Council has had to make difficult decisions.”

Gould said she researched the city’s spending on education and learned that Norwich ranked 95th in per-pupil spending on education in 2016-17 of 185 total school districts. More affluent districts, including Ledyard, ranking 123rd, and Waterford, 110th, are lower than Norwich.

“Norwich, the City Council especially, is trying to find the balance between what we spend for education, public safety and all the expenditures we have to make, and balance that with what the taxpayers can afford,” she said.

The $83 million budget includes several new positions, as well as funding for five additional regular education buses and five special education buses. Overall, the budget includes a $2.2 million combined increase in certified and support staff salaries, a $948,977 increase in benefits and a $2.7 million increase in regular and special education tuition.

The budget includes $200,000 for two psychologist positions and $85,000 for one new kindergarten teacher to start a new developmental kindergarten program with two half-day classes for children not yet ready for full-day kindergarten. And the plan calls for $170,000 for two new middle school teachers necessary for scheduling for the new magnet themes.

Staley questioned why the school bus fuel budget jumped by $150,462 to $533,280. During last spring’s budget deliberations, the board voted to cut $250,000 from the bus fuel line item as part of $1.57 million in cuts from its final proposed budget after the City Council limited the board to a 1 percent increase.

School Business Administrator Athena Nagel told the board Thursday the fuel budget will be in the red this year, and must be increased both to avoid another shortfall and to cover additional fuel for the additional school buses.

Norwich doesn’t own its own buses, but a new contract with First Student Transportation — approved 7-1 Thursday, with Staley voting against it — totals $6.68 million in next year’s budget, and includes the cost of the 10 new buses. Nagel said Norwich buses are crowded and bus rides are long — some over an hour — and many arrive late to school or drop off students late at home.

c.bessette@theday.com