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02/01/2021 11:00 PMThe Board of Selectmen (BOS) officially approved its budget recommendations on Feb. 1, sending it to the Board of Finance, which will consider final modifications and approval on Thursday, Feb. 18.
The operating request is $31,411,175, a $973,178 or 3.20 percent increase. Capital expenditures is $1,102,177, a $120,567 or 10.9 percent increase. The town’s total budget, including capital and debt payments, stands at $42,934,340, or a 2.43 percent increase.
As the budget stands now, the town would see a mill rate increase of 0.39, to 32.70 mills, which is an effective tax increase of 1.21 percent.
The mill rate and tax increase include the Board of Education (BOE) budget proposal as it currently stands, according to Finance Director Maryjane Malvasi. The BOE declined to take a final vote on Feb. 1 on its current proposed budget, which stands at $62,447,051, a $918,592 or 1.49 percent increase.
The schools are also proposing around $6.2 million in bonding projects, including more than $2 million of facility repairs and improvements, put off last year due to the pandemic.
“These are not easy things to do. Not everybody gets what they want,” said First Selectman Matt Hoey. “I just want to thank you for the culture of collaboration developed amongst this board.”
The BOS dropped around $1.3 million from the initial increase requests, mostly from capital, with about $100,000 chopped from requested increases to operating costs. Initial capital requests had come in at about $2.4 million.
Included in those cuts was about $15,000 from Parks & Recreation that would have been used to update bathrooms in the community center. The BOS did approve $5,000 for what was characterized as “essential” safety and health upgrades to the restrooms.
Another requested increase of $21,000 for Human Services was trimmed to a $10,500 increase; that funding was earmarked for before- and after-school care, the Women & Family Life Center, and the behavioral health services center Clifford Beers Clinic.
First Selectman Matt Hoey previously told the Courier that low interest rates made certain bonding projects potentially more sensible to look at now, while also cautioning that it was hard to predict where rates would be when projects actually went through.
The Board of Finance will have a chance to look at both town and school budgets and make further changes beginning Feb. 18. The town’s annual budget meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 6.