In spite of a slight decrease in enrollment and a proposed 1 percent raise and step increase for all of its employees, the Mathews School Board is considering a budget for the coming year that will actually require a lower contribution from the county than the current operating budget.

Much of that is due to a substantial decrease in debt service as the school division’s past building projects begin to be paid off. This year, Mathews will pay $908,988 in debt service principal and interest; for 2015-2016, that figure drops to $572,227.

The school board took its first look at the draft budget prepared by Superintendent of Schools Dr. David J. Holleran during a work session late Tuesday afternoon in the Mathews High School media center.

The draft operating budget of $13.4 million represents a decrease of $142,849, or 1.05 percent, from the 2014-2015 budget. The county’s share of that budget, in the draft, would be $7.44 million, which is a decrease of $96,335 from the curr...