Collins Center urges Lincoln to restructure Hanscom contract finances before 2025 renewal

LINCOLN -- May 30, 2024, Lincoln eyes special legislation and 5 percent rate hike to stabilize Hanscom contract before 2025 renewal. Heather Michaud of the UMass Boston Collins Center told the School Committee Thursday that Lincoln operates as a federal vendor under a contract first signed in 1956, with the current five-year deal expiring in 2025. Her report estimates $14.01 million in potential liabilities, $2.02 million unemployment, $7.73 million OPEB and $4.26 million in Middlesex County pension exposure, and recommends pursuing special state legislation to convert the Hanscom revolving fund into an enterprise account. Only one of four modeled scenarios stabilized the fund balance: a 5 percent revenue adjustment in each year of FY26-FY30. Chair Matina Madrick proposed forming a town-district working group and taking up the report June 13. Hanscom Principal Eric Lieber separately reported a more than 50 percent drop in crisis-response calls, and the long-dormant SEPAC asked for formal recognition.