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The budgets were finalized after an all-day budgeting session March 7 with Selectmen and department representatives, and two meetings of the Warrant Committee last week, he said.
Hurley added that an override budget document has not yet been released but will go to Selectmen for consideration.
“They will probably look to trim that number down,” he said of the $3.1 million override figure.
However, Hurley said even a $3.1 million override won’t be enough for what departments are requesting to bring current services into next year. That would take at least another $2 million, according to Warrant Committee estimates.
“Even if we do get an override, it’s still certainly not going to be for level service,” Hurley said. “It’s not going to be severe cuts to services, but there’ll certainly be reductions in hours, that sort of thing.”
Without an override, he said the cuts would be “pretty catastrophic,” including significant personnel and service cuts, and closings of a school and a fire station.
Under the Warrant Committee’s override budget, approximately two-thirds goes to schools and one-third to town departments. Schools would receive around $1.4 million; the Police Department would get $311,000; the Fire Department, $120,000; Public Works, $200,000; and the other departments, $64,000, Hurley said.
Hurley said the Warrant Committee is anticipating a drop of about $790,000 in state aid next year, with an additional $400,000 cut if the governor’s proposed meals/hotel tax hike does not pass the state Legislature.
He said the FY 10 budget will also absorb around $115,000 worth of an expected $550,000 snow-and-ice deficit, some of which can be made up with the current year’s remaining free cash.
The balanced budget also doesn’t set aside any additional funds for contractual wage increases. The police and fire unions are still negotiating contracts with the town, Hurley said.
“They’re going to have to absorb wage increases into their budgets,” he said.
The Warrant Committee’s balanced budget can be found on this page. The override budget will be published when it is made available.