WETHERSFIELD - Two days after he was asked to present scenarios for $1 million, $2 million, $3 million, and $4 million budget cuts to brace for a Governor proposed executive order slashing all Education Cost Sharing revenue for 85 municipalities in the event that a state budget is not passed by October, Superintendent of Schools Michael Emmett was looking at the potential for a gain in education aid, courtesy of a House Democrats draft.

       â€�"And the pendulum swings back again,” Emmett said over the phone. â€�"It’s hard to plan when the scenarios vary so widely. I’m a week away from the start of school, and I’m still looking at reduction scenarios.”

       Emmett hopes the pendulum lands somewhere close to where the House Democrats are aiming it to-under their plan, Wethersfield would keep the $9.3 million Malloy intends to cut in the absence of a state budget, while gaining around $200,000 in additional education aid going into the 2018 Fiscal Year.

       The total state aid-non education revenue included-would come to about $300,000 less from 2017 to 2018, however. While the combined grants come to $10.6 million for 2017 under the House Democratic plan, it would end up around $10.3 million in 2018.

       â€�"The bottom line is, it’s so much better for towns,” said State Representative Russ Morin on Friday.

       The sticking point right now seems to be the sales tax increase-from 6.35 to 6.85 percent-a component Morin said he accepted, but did not relish.

       â€�"I’d rather not be looking at a sales tax increase, albeit a half percentage,” he said. â€�"I thought we could look at some loopholes in capital gains.”

       He was happy to see the proposed hospital tax absent from the House Democratic budget.

       â€�"Hospitals are huge employers in this region,” he said.

       Morin characterized the proposal as an attempt to incorporate proposals from all entities in the discussion, but admitted he’s â€�"not sure if it will have the votes to pass”.

       He did note that the proposal includes rule changes on collective bargaining-a move directed at giving municipalities more latitude to consolidate functions and services in order to save.

       The $9.3 million Malloy proposes to eliminate makes up 16 percent of the district’s budget. Emmett and Board Chair Bobbie Hughes Granato have already forecasted that, under such a scenario, significant cuts would have to be made to staff and existing programs.

       The Board managed to avert turning to such measures when they reduced their budget ask by $500,000 this past spring at the request of the Town Council, which also expressed a desire to avoid layoffs. That discussion also presented multiple scenarios-the worst being a $1.5 million cut.

       As for the impending start to the school year, Emmett put on an optimistic face, noting that staffing levels-for now-are where they need to be, and that supplies were purchased over the summer.

       â€�"We’re full speed ahead,” Emmett said. â€�"I have everything I need to start the school year.”