Several residents and school board members attended Monday’s selectmen’s meeting to protest changing the formula.

“As a citizen and a taxpayer I am not ill served by this policy. You are not adequately and fairly representing my position as a taxpayer,” said school board member and Mount Desert resident Gail Marshall.

The letter comes on the heels of a public forum on the funding formula held earlier this month. The formula, based on 67 percent property valuation and 33 percent enrollment, has long been a bone of contention for Mount Desert selectmen and a few vocal residents who argue that it penalizes the property-rich, child-poor town. At that forum, selectmen made it clear that they intended to pursue changes.

The cost of funding the Mount Desert Island high school falls on the shoulders of the four island towns: Bar Harbor, Mount Desert, Tremont and Southwest Harbor. Education officials and the high school’s three other member towns support the formula.

At the crux of the Mount Desert selectmen’s argument is the assertion that the formula is unfair due to a disparity in per pupil cost. Mount Desert does pay more per student than the other member towns due to its high property valuation and low student enrollment, but actually contributes less per household than the other member towns.

A property owner in Mount Desert with a home worth $350,000 paid $380 in taxes toward the cost of education this year, while a property owner in Bar Harbor with a home of the same value paid $550.

If judged by each town’s relative tax contribution, the formula is equitable. Under the formula, Mount Desert will raise 1.2 mills in tax effort to support the high school for the upcoming school year, while Bar Harbor, Southwest Harbor and Tremont will raise between 1.6 and 1.7.

Mount Desert residents first approved the funding formula in 1963 as a desired alternative to a state supported formula for the regional high school based 100 percent on valuation.

“There are two ways to look at this issue,” said Union 98 superintendent Rob Liebow. Along with former Mount Desert tax assessor John Brushwein, Mr. Liebow has researched the equity of the current formula and put forth a presentation of that research publicly for the last several years.

“The research that has been done ad nauseam has shown that we are not being unfairly taxed,” said Ms. Marshall.

That research is “not worth the paper it was printed on,” said resident Jim Robinson. “I’m getting really tired of this argument. It’s the same thing being said by the same people. Other towns aren’t going to do anything. They want to get as many eggs from the golden goose in Mount Desert as they can,” said Mr. Robinson. He said the house he bought 10 years ago for $80,000 is now worth more than $600,000. He would like to see a change in the funding formula to reduce what he calls an “8 percent surcharge on my tax bill for education.”

Because of Mount Desert’s low tax rate, Mr. Robinson pays the same each year in taxes as a Tremont resident with a house worth $300,000.

Mr. Liebow took personal offense to Mr. Robinson’s comments.

“This is the second time at a public meeting I’ve attended where work that has been done by the town manager and the former tax assessor of this town has been called not worth the paper it is printed on. I’d like to say publicly that I resent that comment,” he said.

Throughout the discussion, selectmen were resolute in their position. If the high school’s member towns do not agree to the petition, they say they will take a yet-to-be-disclosed action.

“By maintaining the status quo we will conclude that you do not support the question above and the Town of Mount Desert reserves the right to take whatever actions are necessary to seek redress,” reads the letter.

In the past, selectmen have threatened withdrawal from the regional high school. “The threats have been made repeatedly. I think of those as irresponsible challenges to the high school,” said Ms. Marshall.

Selectman Patrick Smallidge indicated that those threats were made several years ago, and that selectmen are now ready to come to the negotiating table. If other towns do not agree to negotiate a change in the formula, however, selectmen will take whatever steps they can to address the situation, he said.