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03/26/2023 06:10 AMThe Board of Finance (BOF) will approve the proposed budget and forward it to Old Saybrook voters at its next meeting on April 4.
At the March 21 meeting, the BOF briefly discussed the Board of Education (BOE) and Town budgets but decided to wait to make any changes. Instead, BOF members discussed their questions about the budget. BOF chairman Paul Carver asked BOF members to come to the April 4 meeting with a list of possible line item changes that the board can address at that meeting.
Carver said the BOF would also approve the proposed budget at that meeting so that the town has adequate time to provide legal notice ahead of the May 9 referendum.
The Budget
Currently, the proposed total budget for the next fiscal year is $50,276,744, representing a $1,899,041 or 3.90% increase over the current year’s budget.
The total budget is made up of a town budget and a BOE budget. The proposed education budget is $ 28,829,506, a $1,356,165 or a 4.90% increase. The proposed town budget is $21,447,238, a $542,876 or a 2.60% increase.
Under the current proposed budget, the mill rate would increase by .38 mills.
Proposed capital projects—spending on items that last longer than a budget cycle, like vehicles or roof repairs— include “... Police vehicle lease, continued work on town roads, building maintenance, and investment in technology infrastructure,” according to a budget summary document prepared by First Selectman Carl Fortuna. An increase in the paving budget is also included in the capital budget.
In the document, Fortuna attributed the rise in the budget partly to effects out of the town’s control. “Inflation and supply chain issues have driven up the cost of labor and materials for everyone, and, although supplies are more readily available, the base cost has risen. In other words, things cost more,” Fortuna wrote in the document. “I have examined both the expenditure and revenue side of the budget, and I believe responsible and sustainable decisions have been made.”
A public hearing on the budget was held on March 7, during which Fortuna and Superintendent of Schools Jan Perruccio made presentations about the town and education budgets. The meeting was lightly attended by members of the public.
Last year voters approved both budgets overwhelmingly. The town budget was approved with 179 votes in favor and 17 against. The education budget passed by a margin of 183 in favor to 13 opposed.