More than half of the leadership positions of the board of selectmen, board of education and board of finance (BOF) are on this year’s ballot. Whether it is the quality of education that our children receive, the quality of town services, and most importantly, the changes in property taxes, all are impacted by decisions those elected will make.
Having had the privilege of serving on the BOF for the past 21-plus years, I would like to share some observations on the board’s operation.
On a macro basis, approximately three out of every four dollars expended in our budget is dedicated to fund the PreK-12 education of our children—currently about 1700 students. These dollars also address the special education needs of students, provide the necessary technology infrastructure and fulfill a myriad of mandated requirements.
The fourth budget dollar supports ALL other town services, including payments of principal and interest on our bonded debt.
The BOF is the critical link that unifies the proposed operating budgets into a singular town budget that is presented to voters at the spring referendum for a vote. The process requires a detailed review of all planned expenditures through ongoing consultation and negotiation to verify the need for expending funds and challenging expenditures that are simply “nice to have.” Many factors enter these deliberations:
The financial support and grants from state and federal sources,
The impact of inflation and investments that our physical and technology infrastructure requires,
The impact of any future bonding,
The strength of our town reserves, and finally,
The projected voter support for change in the tax (mill) rate that would have to be levied.
Our budget proposals historically are supported by significant voter majority and our financial strength and progress are duly reflected in our enviable AA+ rating by rating agencies. Our conservative financial planning has served us extremely well over the years and made us the envy of many towns in the Hartford region.