The clouds gathering over next fiscal year’s budget darkened this week.
At the Tuesday, Nov. 14, meeting of the Finance Committee, Finance Director Jared Mullane released a new revenue and expense forecast that, given the spending requests of town departments and committees, foresees a $1.5 million deficit. That number is approximately $400,000 higher than the $1.1 million shortfall Mullane forecast in mid-October.
The new forecast includes the dollar amounts every committee and department except the schools says it needs to maintain level service in the coming fiscal year, which begins July 1, 2024. The schools have been given until Dec. 5 to prepare their request because of its complexity. However, the latest forecast does include an unofficial $16.6 million estimate based on a presentation shown at the Nov. 13 meeting of the School Committee. That number will rise or fall once the school district and committee complete their planning and submit their formal request next month.
Some departments have requested items or personnel above and beyond the level-service budgets they were asked to prepare, and these have been included in the latest estimate, Mullane said. In their September budget memo, FinCom and the Select Board encouraged departments to do so if the additional spending increased efficiency or improved their quality of service.
Unlike the budgets of the federal and Massachusetts state governments, town budgets must balance. That means that FinCom must—barring a revenue windfall—find ways to cut $1.5 million from town expenses or call for a tax increase beyond the limit set by Proposition 2½, also known as an override.
Members of the Select Board and FinCom have already submitted written questions to department heads regarding their requests. Their answers are due Nov. 20, but FinCom has already met with Department of Public Works Director Tim Kilhart at its Oct. 24 meeting to review his $1.6 million request. (See our story, “DPW requests new administrator position for fiscal 2025” in the Nov. 3 issue of the Press.)
FinCom has until Feb. 6, 2024, to recommend a plan to the Select Board, and Chair Eric Ward told members they will likely need to meet weekly in December and January to get the job done. (See table, Fiscal 2025 Budget Calendar.)
Members present Tuesday asked for hearings on the employee benefits ($6.1 million), fire and EMT ($523,000), police ($1.5 million), Parks and Recreation ($144,000), and school budgets, as well as the town administration’s request for a grant writer. A traditional all-boards meeting is planned for early December to “get everyone on the same page,” Town Administrator Tim Bragan told the group.
FinCom votes to repair trails at Harvard Park
In other business Tuesday, FinCom voted unanimously to transfer $6,500 from the Reserve Fund it oversees to the Parks and Recreation Commission for the repair of walking trails behind Harvard Park.
The trails, in particular the Ginny Loop, suffered “extensive and unforeseen erosion” due to rain in September, Recreation Director Anne McWaters told the committee. “Areas of the trail have been completely washed out, and deep, large trenches were made from rushing waters,” making the trail too dangerous for the many dog-walkers and seniors who use it every day. McWaters said that while volunteers have filled eroded sections, a permanent fix was needed. With DPW unable to do the work, she recommended Pinard Landscaping be hired to put in drainage pipes and swales to combat the problem.
FinCom approved the transfer, but Vice Chair Mike Derse wondered whether the money couldn’t be restored to the fund from another source, such as Community Preservation Act money, which is being collected at a higher rate from taxpayers this fiscal year. Town Administrator Tim Bragan said, somewhat tongue-in-cheek, that while CPA money could not be used for routine maintenance, FinCom could ask Town Meeting in the spring to increase the Reserve Fund balance by $6,500 to restore the withdrawal.
The Reserve Fund is a savings account from which the Finance Committee can appropriate money for unforeseen and emergency expenses, such as snow and ice removal.
—JO
