EAST PROVIDENCE — Although still in its infancy, school officials hope to request a spending plan for next year that is similar to this year’s $71.28-million budget.

Except for the technology department, Schools Supt. Jacqueline Forbes asked the principals and department leaders to submit budgets that stay within this year’s allotment and do not ask for any new programs or staff. The School Committee’s finance subcommittee reviewed the requests in three public meetings over the last two weeks.

It has a fourth and final meeting tonight at 6:30 in the Orlo Avenue Elementary School. The gathering is set for residents to ask any questions about the nascent budget. The entire School Committee will meet with the City Council tomorrow at 5:15 p.m. in City Hall to also discuss the department’s financial picture and its potential $2.9-million deficit next year.

The formal budget process begins next month. The full committee will approve a budget request and forward it to City Manager Richard Brown toward the end of the summer. The council approves budgets for all East Providence departments in the fall. The new fiscal year begins November 1.

“It’s a very good first step,” said School Committee member Robert Faria, who sits on the finance subcommittee, about the budget workshops so far. “Yet there’s room for improvement.”

He also wished more residents had attended, particularly to hear why the district needs additional money for technology updates. Information and technology director Lori Fox said the city’s main accounting system predates Microsoft Windows, which surprised several in the room last week. There are also people in the district’s human resources office who cannot share information because their computers aren’t compatible.

“The technology budget is not level-funded [the same amount as this year],” Fox announced. It is the only department at this time to have a recommended increase, Faria said. “… Our equipment is quite old. Other communities have three-to-five-year replacement cycles, but that isn’t the case here.”

Although a technology budget figure was not discussed, Fox is asking for $5,000 to repair some equipment and $45,000 for printers and computers. Fox said there are about 750 computers throughout the district, most of which are at the high school. She said the elementary schools have “next to nothing.”

“The high school now is really state of the art,” Fox said.

Said Forbes, “As it should be, the high school is the flagship of our district.”

School officials also said they are doing the best they can with what is there and providing as much “triage” as necessary to keep systems up and running.

“We don’t have a complete budget, but is obvious [what’s currently allotted for] technology isn’t nearly enough,” Faria said. “Technology is a never-ending thing and we will always have that, but in the next few years, the city has to make a decision. Does it want to always stay behind [the technological curve] or does it wants to invest and upgrade? Lori Fox said it, ‘We are going to need a boat load of money just to catch up.’ ”

apina@projo.com