A Candia selectman said officials might consider tapping a conservation funding source in light of increased town expenses while some School Board members said they’re hoping to flatline their budget as much as possible.

Selectman Joe Duarte said he is growing increasingly concerned over what will happen this winter as home heating oil and diesel fuel prices now approach the $5 mark, while regular unleaded gas still hovers around $4 per gallon. Duarte said the town gave out some $33,000 in home heating fuel assistance last year, and this year’s assistance estimates are already approaching a record $70,000.

Additionally, Duarte said the school will have to grapple with its own budget constraints, and he said he’d like to see a proposal come forward to replace the school’s cafeteria and gymnasium in the coming year. To help with cash flow, Duarte said officials might consider redirecting up to 75 percent of the Conservation Commission’s land use change fees to the town’s general fund.

Commission Chairman Ed Fowler said that as of today, 100 percent of the fees go to the commission account, which has more than $500,000 in it, and the money can be used to purchase development rights or buy property for conservation. Land use change money is generated when land listed as in “current use,” which has a lower taxable rate, is sold, and Fowler said the town generates about $100,000 in fees each year.

Duarte said the cafeteria conditions are very crowded when school is in session, and as a result, the children are allotted only a short amount of time for lunch. While he said that this could be the year that finances overshadow conservation, School Board member Ingrid Byrd said the prevailing financial conditions are so poor right now that she would be surprised to see any school building projects like this come forward later this year as budget talks begin.

“We have not even talked about a budget yet, but I don’t think we can do that to people when gas is $4 a gallon,” she said. “The people I talk to tell me they’re not just having a hard time, they’re having a desperate time.”

Both Byrd and Duarte said they favor a change in the landuse fee allocations, even though a warrant article to change to a fee schedule giving the town 75 percent of the money was defeated at this year’s town vote.

Byrd said the elderly, in particular, could use some financial assistance as they try to strike a balance between food and fuel costs on a fixed income.

“I don’t always agree with Joe on everything, but I agree that this is a time when people should come before trees,” she said. “We can always change it after the economy picks back up.”

Fowler pointed out this year’s defeat of the measure and said the public will likely vote in a similar way if the land-use fee change is brought up again. He said peoples’ needs and environmental concerns, even in a poor financial climate, will not necessarily be mutually exclusive.

“It depends on how tough the financial straits are, but I believe they can co-exist, or at least I certainly hope they do,” he said. “I think the majority of the public will still support our efforts to protect open space.”