New Proposed Budget for East Haddam Set at $28.35 Million

It was a full house at Thursday night's East Haddam Board of Finance meeting as Board members grappled over what cuts to make to the new budget after the first failed at referendum in May.

After hearing from residents who crowded into Grange Hall to listen in on the decision, the board opted to accept the cuts from the Board of Selectman's budget, which was a total expense cut of $342,529, which is a $170,000 reduction of taxes, and to only reduce the Board of Education budget by $6,333, which was the amount of savings realized from retirement of a paraprofessional. The decision was not unanimous by all members of the board, but passed in a four to two vote.

On the subject of First Referendum Budget

Some Board members stated there was no definite reason, to their knowledge, why the budget didn’t pass the first time, but one Board member had this to say:

I talked to some folks after the referendum and I heard three reasons. Some folks were unhappy about the Town Hall and Grange Grant we received from the state that requires us to contribute $100,000. Others had some confusion over the operating expenditures, and others took the mill rate and calculated bills and thought it was too hgih. Some people would have paid 4% more in property taxes, but some would have payed closer to 10% more because of evaluations.

Other Board members had heard from residents that they didn’t know it was the day of voting.

“I think the reason people voted no, is because they just can’t afford it,” said one resident later on in the meeting.

One Board member stated that it was costing the town another $20,000 to redo the referendum.

On the Board of Selectmen Budget

The Board of Selectmen new proposed budget was the first to be presented. Many of the reductions made were possible because the town now qualifies for a higher amount in state grants than it did at the time of the first referendum.

“We met last night and made these recommendations,” said First Selectman Mark B. Walter. “We were able to make reductions without layoffs. We had 50 employees and we still have 50 employees.”

Changes for the new budget included:

-Reduced requested wage increase of Tax Collector ($4,660) and Recreation Director ($3,440)

-Reduction of Shared Service Funds (totalling $75,000)

-Reduction of $10,000 Conservation Commission Capital request

-Reduction of $167,237 representing increased Town Aid Road funds from State

-Other various grant increases from state that allowed for reductions in budget

The Board of Finance ultimately decided to approve all of the proposed reductions for the Board of Selectmen budget.

On the Board of Education Budget

“I was at the Board of Education meeting the other night and some people stated that if the BOE budget gets cut by even a dollar, they would do everything they could to vote against it,” said one Board of Finance member.

What the Board of Education did give to the Board of Finance were potential reductions (not approved reductions) totalling $312,000. The BOF ultimately turned down in a vote the motion to make all $312,000 potential cuts.

Many residents in the audience urged the BOF not to make any reductions to the Board of Ed budget.

“I am concerned about cuts to our Board of Ed,” said one resident. “Our town will wither and die if we do not support our schools. People will leave this town if our education system cannot provide an appropriate education for our students.”

Other residents asked: “With enrollment numbers going down, why is the budget going up?”

It was explained that some part of Board of Education increases were due to contractual agreements that included salary increases. It was calculated that there was approximately a 3% increase in salaries, totalling $256,358, which is spread across 188 FTEs.

The Board ultimately decided not to make any further reductions to the Board of Education Budget, save for to reduce the budget by a savings that was found by the Board of Ed which totalled $6,333.

BOF: On Deciding Where to Cut

“There is no good answer, there is just a less bad answer,” said one member of the Board of Finance as the Board began to make decisions on what proposals they should accept. “And we have to make the tough choices.”

Some members of the Board were pleased that the new budget reduced the reliance on the fund balance by $310,000.

Board members also discussed the possibility of initiating fees for certain town services, such as the use of the transfer station, as a way to generate dollars for the town. Several members stated that this was still a ‘tax,’ since everyone had to use the service, just in a different way.

On What the Public Had to Say

The attached video shows what some residents spoke about. Here’s what others had to say:

“Where are the priorities of the BOS and the BOF? The town put millions of dollars into Open Space, and now that money, $750,000 is coming out of taxpayers money. They need to get their priorities straight- they do not reflect what is really needed here in the students and the town.”

“We want to see balanced reductions and present it to us in a way we can understand.”

“From what you’ve talked about tonight, it’s nickels and dimes.”

“Please be sensitive to the educational component of our budget.”

What does this New Budget mean to voters?

As it currently stands, the new budget proposal is $28,351,214 for the 2013-2014 fiscal year. This is a mill increase of 4.49 mills and a tax increase of 3.1%. For the average household, with a home assessed at $300,000, this would be approximately a $145 increase in taxes per year.

The first proposal which failed at referendum stood at a budget of $28,700,076, with the average household increase of $150 taxes per year.

What’s next?

A Public Hearing on Monday, June 10 at 7 PM at the Nathan Hale-Ray High School, Auditorium.