NORTON -- Parents of school athletes and bus riders will have to shell out some extra cash next year, if the school committee formally adopts user fee policies set in motion to help make up some of the department's large budget shortfall.

`` It's not something we want to do, and we've held off,'' said committee member Marge Werner. `` But, I don't know where (else) we're going to get the money from.''

If an official vote, scheduled for Monday, goes as planned, fees would apply as follows:

E Athletes would be charged $100 per child for each sport season at the middle school and high school; there is a proposed $250 maximum charge per student and $450 maximum charge per family for the school year.

E Bus riders would be charged $200 per child per year; there is a proposed $400 maximum charge per family, and students in grades K-6 who live further than two miles from their school would not be charged, according to state law. E High school students would be charged $25 per year to park their car at the school.

School committee members discussed, at length, Wednesday night, several funding possibilities to make up for the budget hole created when voters overwhelmingly rejected a $2.6 million Prop 2 1 / sub 2 override during a town election last month.

While the fees will not be sufficient to restore all the items that since have been cut from the department's budget, they would, among other things, restore freshmen sports teams.

The focus, they said, was on putting the smallest financial burden on parents while generating revenue.

`` Bus fees would be the most across the board and would generate more revenue,'' said committee member Kevin O'Neil. `` But, instead of eliminating sports, we should provide the opportunity for people to pay for it.''

There are differences in the ways the fees would benefit the department. Sports fees -- for middle school, freshmen, junior varsity and varsity athletes -- would offset the cost of each participating child against the $300,000 budgeted for the school year, and allow the schools to reinstate middle school and freshmen sports teams.

Bus fees would go further to pay offset cuts, especially to items needed for state accreditation of the high school, including textbooks and technology.

Parking fees, by law, can only be used for parking area maintenance, including snow removal, or improvements.

The committee rejected the ideas of issuing activity, material and musical arts fees.

After a vote is taken comes the task of getting everything in place before the start of school in September. Especially complicated will be the bus fees. After parents sign up their children, transportation routes will have to be redrawn and students will have to be assigned bus passes to ensure than unregistered riders don't board the buses.

Members also acknowledged that the fees will be more than some families can handle, and fear that some students, for example, may not be able to play sports if they have to ride the bus.

`` The fees could add up to more than (extra) taxes would have,'' said member Tom Golota.

Members did not estimate how much extra revenue would be expected from the fees, but did caution that the fees would be revisited each year and that bus fees most likely would be raised next year when the department's transportation contract is renewed.

The school committee will meet on Monday, July 17 at 6:30 p.m. at the Norton Middle School library.