There may be a $600,000 question at this year’s Town Meeting, centering on education.

That figure is the difference between what town officials say is available for education and what Wareham Public Schools officials say is required to avoid a monumental changes in the district.

Voters will be asked to weigh in on the debate at Town Meeting, set for April 23 at 7 p.m. in the Wareham High School auditorium. All registered voters may participate. Also on the agenda will be items asking for $250,000 to restore the Onset Pier, $142,750 renovate the Wareham Wesley United Methodist Church and a controversial $80,000 request to fund a full-time director for the Wareham Council on Aging.

Regarding education, town officials will ask voters to approve a $28.8 million budget. Due to lackluster municipal revenues, officials said, additional funds are not available without making drastic cuts to town departments such as police, EMS, Municipal Maintenance and the town’s decertified library, which just recently got on solid financial footing to regain its state certification. In total, town officials will seek a $62.2 million budget, up 5 percent from last year.

Since December, school officials have worked to reconcile their number with the town’s figure, eventually reaching a $29.4 million budget. Further reductions, officials said, would require upwards of 30 layoffs and the possible closing of Minot Forest Elementary School.

“Changes in the budget will seriously impact how our district will be operating,” said Superintendent Dr. Kimberly Shaver-Hood. “These potential changes are monumental and will change how education is offered in Wareham.”

Last week, the School Committee was set to approve the $28.8 million budget and decide whether to close Minot Forest Elementary, a cost-saving measure that would move students to Decas Elementary while officials explore plans to build a new school. Instead, committee members failed to reach an agreement, and a tie vote left the budget at $29.4 million. No decisions on Minot Forest Elementary or layoffs were made. The committee is set to meet at 5:30 p.m. on April 23 to revisit the budget. School Committee Chair Joyce Bacchiocchi said it’s unclear if an agreement will be reached.

Unlike most cities and towns in Massachusetts, Wareham’s school budget number is placed on Town Meeting agenda by town officials. Cities and towns across the state usually have that number provided by school committees. The quirk is due to Wareham’s “home rule charter,” said Selectmen Chair Alan Slavin. Adopted in 1977, the charter supersedes state law.

“The bottom line is the town administrator submits the budget,” said Slavin.

If school officials do not reduce their budget and voters at Town Meeting adopt the one provided by the town, education cuts will be on the way.

The only way to avoid the cuts is to have a voter at Town Meeting propose a new budget number for the school. The new number must then be approved by voters. Under state law, a balanced budget must be approved. The problem, Slavin said, is that the money would have to come from other town departments to fund the schools, departments that are already operating as lean as possible.

“You have to come back with a balanced budget,” said Slavin. “We would have to sit there and take money from here, there and wherever. That itself would be a real problem.”

Going that route could be contentious as town officials would have to defend their budgets from cuts during the meeting. Slavin said there is no easy answer if someone proposes increasing the town’s education budget.

“This is a situation that’s happening all over the state,” said Slavin. “Schools are having to make cuts, and not just towns like Wareham, wealthier communities are having trouble.”

Other agenda items at Town Meeting include a $80,000 request submitted by a resident to fund a full-time director for the Council on Aging.

Officials said funds just aren’t available for the well-intentioned request. Currently, a part-time director is working to provide some services. While the situation isn’t ideal, it is working well enough until funds are available, said Town Administrator Derek Sullivan.

The request will be before voters courtesy of Frank Urciuoli, who moved to Onset in 2016. He gathered the necessary signatures needed to place the item on Town Meeting agenda via a citizen’s petition.

“Many surrounding towns have directors and seniors here could really use someone,” said Urciuoli. “I think your grandparents, great-grandparents and the elderly couple living next door are worth that small amount.”

A similar request, made at the October 2017 Town Meeting, was withdrawn by supporters. At the time, those in favor of the item said they didn’t want to see the funds taken from other town budgets.

Voters will also be asked to spend $250,000 to develop engineering plans for Onset Pier. Wareham Department of Natural Resources Director Garry Buckminster said the plans will identify exactly what must be done to make repairs. The funds will come from the Community Preservation Committee. Each year, the committee allocates money through the state’s Community Preservation Act in four categories: open space, historic preservation, affordable housing and recreation. The money is raised through a surcharge on property tax bills. The state then matches a percentage of the town-raised money. Funds must be approved at Town Meeting.

Buckminster said a survey was done on the pier in 2014 that revealed structural issues, such as loose fasteners and failing siding. The same survey estimated an overhaul would cost $4 million. While the previous survey revealed the issues facing the pier, the new engineering plans will layout a path forward for making those repairs and get the project “shovel ready.” Buckminster said projects that have the necessary planning and engineering work already done receive priority when it comes to grants.

“I think with these plans in place, this will put us in a good position to seek grant funding,” said Buckminster.

Another Community Preservation request is for $142,750 for exterior work at the Wesley United Methodist Church, located on Main Street. This is the second time parishioners will seek the funds in as many years.

Their initial request was not voted on last year due to a Massachusetts Supreme Court case originating in Acton. The group Americans United for Separation of Church and State challenged the use of Community Preservation Act funds for restoring a church. That case hasn’t been decided yet, and Selectmen said if the issue remained unresolved, the parishioners’ request must be pulled from the Town Meeting agenda to avoid a potential legal challenge.

If approved, the funds will be used to replace rotting clapboards on the church’s exterior and repaint the building. While those repairs appear minor, church leaders said lead paint and asbestos mitigation add to the cost.