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Finance Committee Chairman Jim Gaston said the town and school budgets are “on the same footing” with less revenue than the town would like, increased wages and benefits, and population changes.
The Finance Committee began reviewing budget proposals for both the town and schools at its Feb. 15 meeting. The city’s budget is currently proposed at $48,834,506, which would represent a spending increase of $1,308,366, or 2.75%. And the school budget is proposed at $89,826,756, an increase of $4,757,105 or 5.59%. The overall end result is a combined proposed budget of $138,661,262, an increase in spending of $6,065,471 or 4.3%. Treasurer Bob Tait has not yet announced the overall tax impact of the proposed budget.
The main factors in the school budget are a $1,978,394 increase in salaries, a $995,194 increase in benefits, a $721,700 increase in equipment, a $587,073 increase in purchased real estate services, and a $240,208 increase in other purchased services. , and an increase in property and equipment of $148,063.
Salaries increased by 3.58%, with the teachers’ union increasing by 1.5%, the top tier only increasing by 2%, the administrators’ union increasing by 2.75%, the custodial maintenance association increasing by 3%, and the education staff union increasing by 3%. There is. That’s a 3 percent increase.
In a presentation to the Finance Committee, Superintendent of Schools Chris Melillo said that this year will include rising benefit costs, contractual wage increases, aging facilities, inflationary pressures, unfunded state mandates, and the lingering effects of learning interruptions. It outlined a number of financial challenges facing schools. From the pandemic and the fiscal cliff.
Melillo said the district faces challenges in supporting students, including behavioral issues, social-emotional development, chronic absenteeism and the need for mental health support.
As part of the move, the district estimates that state tuition funding, which is primarily intended to cover special education costs, will decrease by more than $300,000, from $1,832,349 last year to $1,577,304 this year. It is estimated.
Although the number of students is decreasing in the upper grades, it is increasing in kindergarten through fourth grade. The district plans to make staffing changes, eliminating one teacher at Sandy Hook and two high school teachers, while adding one teacher, one special education worker and one part-time social worker to O’Meadow. We are planning to add . I also serve as the dean of students for the high school and middle school.
Melillo said the need for the dean of students position is growing due to chronic absenteeism and an increase in “behaviors,” or student behavior and rule violations. The dean of students will handle discipline and allow the vice principal, who is currently responsible for behavior problems, to focus on instructional and administrative tasks.
This results in an overall increase of 1.15 full-time positions and an increase of $99,680.
For non-certified staff, the budget increases the hours of staff at Hawley, Sandy Hook, Middlegate and Head-Omeadow schools by 0.2 full-time equivalents each, plus an additional 0.5 part-time PE staff. . High school trainer. Two paraprofessionals will be eliminated, representing 1.22 of his full-time positions, and the total change in non-certified personnel will be 0.08 of his full-time positions, an increase of $22,099.
“We have a budget that allows us to meet the needs of our students,” Melillo said. “We’re not looking for an increase in numbers. Student numbers are flat. What we’re seeing is massive price increases in areas that are outside of the district’s control.”
Melillo noted that neighboring school systems have seen similar or higher spending increases, with Monroe at 7% this year and Trumbull at “about 7%.”
BOE Chair Alison Plante said the presentation created “issues with us” for the Finance Committee because BOE and school officials already had “many eyes” on the budget. He said the BOF was given the opportunity to review the budget and provide additional input. Give your opinion and come up with different ideas and solutions.
“This budget represents Chris’ best thinking.” [Melillo], the staff, and the school board,” Plante said. “if [the finance board sees] Anything we can do differently, we’re very open to that. ”
The board has until March 14 to submit a proposed budget to the Legislative Council. He is scheduled to meet with school officials and the Board of Education again on February 26 to answer questions.
Town budget for “same services”
Following the Select Board’s review of the town’s budget last month, the Select Board made $22,160 in cuts, including $12,918 from the Parks and Recreation Department. Because the workers have already received a minimum wage increase, they will not receive a raise from the town. ; $10,848 from Social Services and $1,605 from Economic and Community Development; This reduces the budget from first selectman Jeff Capeci’s original proposed budget of $48,856,666, which would have been a 2.8% spending increase.
Capeci said at the BOF meeting that the town’s budget is for “same services” without staffing increases.
“We didn’t want to make any major changes until we’d been around a little longer,” Capeci said.
Capeci said at the Jan. 18 BOS meeting that the budget he received from department heads before the review was supposed to increase spending by 6.25%, “which was a little high for me.”
The police department’s budget increased by $484,332 (6.15%), primarily due to salaries, wages, benefits, and retirement benefits. The ministry had been recruiting additional staff, but Capeci cut the additional positions. The Finance Committee seemed open to the possibility of adding the position back.
CH Booth Library announced a library budget increase of $173,531 (13.33%) to $1,475,000.
The library has received flat funding since 2021, but was facing a spending cliff after being cut by the Legislative Council by $100,000 in the 2023-24 budget. The library was approved for $1,407,621 in the 2022-23 budget, reduced to $1,307,621. In the 2023-24 budget. The City Council asked the library to expend its $523,882 fund balance, which the library did.
The Department of Public Works had asked for a spending increase of $234,149, or 2.61%.
The proposed fire budget for 2024-25 is $1,566,963, an increase of $112,384 or 7.73% compared to the 2023-24 budget of $1,454,674. The budget increase is being driven by “increased contributions to the Year of Service Recognition Program and an increase in the energy account.”
Parks and Recreation also has a proposed budget increase of $164,176, or 6.15%, from $2,669,754 in 2023-24 to $2,833,930 in 2024-25. This increase was primarily driven by increases in wages and benefits.
Seasonal wages increased by $46,459, or 16.5%, from $281,531 in 2023-24 to $327,990 in 2024-25. Much of that is due to increases in the minimum wage, which will rise to $15 in 2023 and $15.69 in 2024.
Capital items went from $25,000 in 2023-24 to $44,000 in 2024-25, an increase of $9,000 or 25.71%. Among the capital items in the 2024-25 budget are $5,000 for a cut-off saw, weed remover and backpack blower, $25,000 for a replacement pool cleaner and $14,000 for a mini excavator drum multi-head. I am.
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Editor Jim Taylor can be reached at jim@thebee.com.
The Finance Committee recently began reviewing the budget, with overall spending increasing by 4.3% compared to last year.
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