Politics & Government

Public Hearing On Combined Town Budget Tonight

Residents have a chance to voice their opinions about the zero-increase budget.

 

Ledyard residents are invited to attend a public hearing on the combined town and school budget tonight at 7 p.m. in the Ledyard High School Auditorium.

Last week, the Town Council voted 6-0 to adopt a , which is comprised of a $19,624,588 general government budget and a $29,544,964 education budget and those numbers represent a zero increase tax rate from the current year’s budget.

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The tax rate will remain at 27.93 mills although getting to that wasn’t so certain at the beginning of the process. Mayor John Rodolico’s initial proposal called for a 0.28 mill increase in the tax rate, which was the result of an anticipated shortfall in the school board’s budget after a one-time $703,000 grant was spent this year.

The school board found some savings and reduced some expenses. Three people will be laid off but eight salaries will be eliminated from the 2012-13 budget, according to Graner. There was also a $85,000 reduction to the instructional accounts, a $64,831 reduction to the operational accounts and the $63,000 reduction to the special education.

Find out what's happening in Ledyardwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

All told, the finance committee had to establish approximately , according to Michael France, who chairs the committee.

The school board was able to provide half of that amount with heating and fuel funds leftover from the warm winter even though the district faced budget cuts and laid off teachers.

After the school board’s decision to give their surplus money to the town, the finance committee still had to realize $207,248 in savings or revenue and here’s how they did it:

  • $40,000 that was budgeted for snow removal this year was transferred from public works to a general government surplus account.
  • $10,000 was moved from town council contingency fund to a surplus account. Finance Committee Chair Michael France said the money in the $20,000 account will be used for unbudgeted costs as they arise.
  • The committee reduced the town council’s legal fees fund by $10,000. France said last year the council paid $500 in legal fees, and the fund is budgeted for $20,000.
  • The committee reduced the funds in the health coverage reserve fund by $100,000.
  • The committee reduced the budgeted amount for a revaluation from $56,000 to $46,000.  A full revaluation typically costs $250,000 to $300,000 according to France. He said the town typically budgets for the full amount in installments over five years.
  • The committee decided not to fund . As proposed, taxpayers would have fund $25,000 of the request, but the entire item has been removed from the 2012-13 budget.

Councilor Sharon Wadecki said was one of the best budgets that has come to the town council but then expressed some concern.

“I am going to support this budget but I think I would have preferred that we left the mayor’s small tax increase in place because I have this fear that with all these zeroes that we’re suddenly going to have a large tax increase,” she said. “I will vote for this budget but with the caution that I just see this snowballing into a problem.”

School board chairwoman Sharon Hightower said something similar at an earlier meeting.

"I want to remind people that over the last several years we've been reducing the budget, in fact we've been reducing and nipping at these programs," said Hightower before the budget was approved. "I don't want folks to get comfortable around the fact that zero works. It really doesn't work…you get to the point of diminishing returns when you don't start to put the appropriate level of resource."


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