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Vital to Keep Town Affordable

Madison’s Town and Board of Education budget votes are Tuesday, May 16, on a total budget request of $94.4 million. The Town budget is $61.8 million (up 4.78%); the education budget is $32.6 million (up 2.5%).

“Rising health care costs and inflation” are often cited as the main reason for budget increases. Private sector employees pay higher contributions to their own health care costs as employers require it. Few private sector employees receive annual pay increases; many have not seen salary increases in years. Many local government and education staff receive cost of living increases annually. Some increases are dictated by contracts, but it is the town that negotiates and agrees to such contracts.

Connecticut ranks second nationally for state and local taxes, third highest in real estate rate, and seventh highest in vehicle property rate. Local budgets must balance the fiscal burden residents deal. In the proposed Madison town budget, health insurance costs are up $2.2 million (10.8%), debt payments $1.7 million (12%), and capital projects up 13%. The BoE budget request is up 1.5M (2.52%), with a 9.4% increase in Health Insurance costs. Miscellaneous budget items to note: local employee benefits are up 5%, while senior services are down 16%. Also worth noting is over $463,700 in the police department “overtime and holiday pay” (up 2.5%). Residents want a safe town, but is this necessary when they just hired three new officers?

No doubt, trimming budgets is an unpopular and difficult task, but it is vital to keep the town affordable. Madison residents don’t have a vote on state or federal taxes, but we do have a vote on our town budget and hence our local taxes. On May 16, vote on whether the town budget and Board of Education budgets are something you can live with.

Teresa VandenDolder

Madison