The Dartmouth School Committee’s Budget Subcommittee took its first look at the budget for its fiscal year 2023 at a Feb. 7 meeting, estimating next year’s budget to reach about $49.4 million, a 4.68% increase over this year’s total.

During the meeting, Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations Jim Kiely presented the subcommittee with an overview of current budget projections and discussed some of the variables that will need to be accounted for by the time the budget is finalized.

Within the schools, Kiely discussed possible wage increases arising from upcoming labor negotiations, upcoming retirements, enrollment changes, and an increase to the rate paid for out-of-district students who attend Dartmouth schools.

At the state level, Kiely said that it was “unfortunate” that the governor’s proposal for school funding would only increase Dartmouth’s funding by 1% — or about $100,000.

“It is an increase but basically it’s a step backward when we look at inflation, wage increases, and everything else,” he said.

Kiely also bemoaned increases to the amount of money that the town has to pay to Greater New Bedford Vocational Technical High School and Bristol County Agricultural High School for Dartmouth residents that attend those schools.

Kiely said the 8% in funding for GNBVT alone would cost $418,000.

“That’s pretty significant,” he said. “It’s definitely a concern.”

The fiscal year 2022 budget totaled just under $47.2 million while a draft of the FY23 budget came out to $49.2 million, a 4.22% increase year-to-year.

The draft budget, though, does not account for new spending proposals like new staff, money for supplies and technology, and new programs.

Funding all of the proposals would cost an additional $970,000, bringing the total FY23 budget up to $50.1 million, a 6.28% increase.

But the subcommittee recommended only a few select proposals be funded through the budget in the upcoming year.

The first was a new teacher for Quinn School where class sizes are in danger of growing too large.

Next, Kiely said, they would prioritize the hiring of new directors of teaching and learning for the elementary and secondary levels to replace current Director Tracy Oliveira who will be retiring in September.

Finally, Kiely recommended the district hire a registered behavioral technician teacher’s assistant and train three existing staff members to provide RBT services.

With those three proposals included, the FY23 budget would total about $49.4 million, a 4.68% increase from FY22.

The Budget Subcommittee will next meet to present its recommendations to the School Committee on Feb. 14.