Proposed Town Budget Sees 6.86 Percent Increase
‘Public Safety Highest Priority’

By Fay Abrahamsson
Published on 2/28/2008

Amid requests from town departments to add new staff, the Board of Selectmen (BOS) had to deny such budget increases, stating that public safety was its highest priority in a fiscally tight year. The total proposed budget is $27,505,850–an increase of 6.86 percent or $1,765,118 over last year. “We agreed that we would add four additional fire personnel and one new police officer,” said First Selectman Carl Balestracci. One other request for a full-time program coordinator for the Social Services Department is also proposed. “It has been a difficult year,” added Balestracci. “We have many built-in increases to the budget that we have no control over.” Residents will have their say over the town’s proposed $27.5 million budget at a public hearing on Tuesday, March 4 at 7:30 p.m. at the Greene Community Center. The projected budget is for fiscal year ’08-’09 which begins July 1 and runs through June 30, 2009. All budgets are preliminary until approved by the town’s Board of Finance (BOF), and finalized through the town electors and voters via a town meeting and referendum. Of the total amount, the town’s operating budget is $22.8 million and debt service (the amount of interest and principal paid on money the town has borrowed for bonded projects) is $4.7 million. There is also a contingency line item of $175,000 that adds to the final number. The challenge this year, said Finance Director Sheila Riegelmann, is a drop in a line item called “All Other Revenues,” which is everything other than property taxes. “The overall amount of all other revenues has gone down $12,000 in one year,” said Riegelmann, who said the amount will have to be made up in taxes. This revenue category includes such things as state grants, building fees, interest income, and ambulance fees. Capital expenditures are projected at $972,270 due to the proposed purchases of two trucks for the Department of Public Works, three police vehicles, software for the community dispatch center, and equipment for the Parks & Recreation Department. This number represents a 172 percent increase over last year’s capital request. “It is important that we support a replenishment program for capital projects,” added Riegelmann. Other increases include a 65 percent increase for Inland Wetlands Commission to cover a rise in complex applications and a 46 percent increase for Social Services. Employee benefits saw a 2.21 percent increase from $4.6 million to $4.7 million. The proposed school budget, which was approved by the Board of Education recently, stands at $48.3 million, an increase of 5.95 percent over last year’s figure. In addition to the March 4 Board of Finance Public Hearing, other budget meetings include a March 6 BOF Workshop; a March 10 BOF Public Hearing (if necessary); an April 1 Annual Budget Meeting; and the Budget Referendum which is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday, April 8. Guilford’s Proposed ’08 - ’09 Budget Town Operating Budget: $22.8 million School Budget: $48.3 million Debt Service: $4.7 million Total Budget $75.8 million Current Mill Rate 24.32 Proposed Town Budget by Departments: Police Department $3.8 million Fire Department $2.8 million Public Works Department $2.0 million Parks & Recreation $1.3 million Library $1 million Board of Selectmen $507,926 Communications $467,355 Youth & Family Services $453,098 Engineering Department $319,866 Finance Department $306,504 Health Department $209,897 Assessor’s Office $205,814 Building Department $202,370 Town Clerk’s Office $190,469 Other Budget Items Employee Benefits $4.7 million Debt Retirement – principal $3.2 million Debt Retirement – interest $1.4 million Capital $972,270 Insurance $639,800 Town Properties $449,281 Fire Hydrants $386,427 Legal $212,000 Waste Transfer Station $95,000