Finance Officials Make Additional Cuts to 2012-13 Budget

After a focused debate, the Simsbury Board of Finance voted to reduce two portions of the proposed 2012-13 town budget forcing town and school officials to make some tough decisions before presenting the budget to residents.

The Board of Finance voted to reduce the proposed education budget amount of $63.9 million to $63.7 million and made additional cuts to the Capital and Non-recurring budget.

"We had some discussions around a reduction in the Board of Education budget in the area of $200,000, that it was a little bit too high," Board of Finance Chair Paul Henault said. "I still think a cut of $200,000 would bring us down to a more realistic budget."

The proposed amount would have reflected a 1.78 increase over last year and the revised amount reflects a 1.45 percent increase.

Superintendent of Schools Diane Ullman said the Board of Education will need to consider where the cuts will be made, but that recent developments could help make the reduction possible. The developments include a recent resignation of a senior faculty member, a reduction in the district's trash contract and a decrease in the district's insurance costs.

"We can probably squeak by with this given some of this new news that's come along in terms of changes in our obligations," Ullman said. "If it were any more than that we would probably be looking at raising class size at the upper elementary level."

Board of Finance member Nicholas Mason voiced an objection to the reduction in the budget so close to the town meeting when voters will make the final decision on next year's budget.

"I guess the thing that bothers me the most is that the Board of [Education] and obviously the administration have spent a tremendous amount of time coming up with their best proposal for a plan that works, and here at the eleventh hour we're deciding to fiddle with it," Mason said.

Mason's objection was not with the cut but rather the process with which finance officials made the decision. Mason said he would have preferred setting guidelines earlier on in the budget process for both the Board of Education budget and the Capital and Non-recurring budgets.

The Board voted 5-1 to approve the reduction. Mason voted against the action.

Henault also recommended reductions in the Capital and Non-recurring budgets for both the Board of Education and Selectmen budgets by approximately $149,000. The proposed Capital and Non-recurring education budget was $614,000 and the revised amount is $520,000. The proposed Board of Selectmen amount was $422,810 and the revised amount is $367,810.

"It's a tight budget and we don't have lots of capacity," Board of Finance member Kevin North said.

School District Business Manager Burke LaClair told finance officials he would need to review the proposed budget with the Board of Education to determine where cuts could be made.

First Selectman Mary Glassman told finance officials that the Board of Selectmen had identified the proposed bike-friendly initiatives as the only reasonable cut that could be made to their portion of the Capital and Non-recurring budget. The reduction would also require the elimination of additional projects from the town's  budget.

"That would mean that we wouldn't do some of the improvements in the trail system. We wouldn't replace fencing, we wouldn't put signage up, we wouldn't do bike racks," Glassman said. "Really, the bike-friendly initiatives were the only initiatives that people felt comfortable recommending."

Glassman said that, if needed, the Board of Finance could choose to cut the improvements to Tariffville Park, but urged them to maintain funding for the project. Henault told Glassman it was the obligation of the Board of Selectmen to make the decision of where cuts would be made, not the Board of Finance.

Glassman said the Board of Selectmen could not meet the revised budget amount while serving the needs of the community responsibly and feels the improvements at the park and other remaining appropriations are necessary.

"I think then you're not doing your job. I don't think the Board of Selectmen is doing its job in that regard," Henault said. "You're asking us to pick a project."

Finance officials voted 5-1 to approve the reductions. Board member Jeff Blumenthal voted against the change voicing concern that the cut would put the town at risk of liability if the park improvements could not be completed.

The proposed budgets before reductions were made would have resulted in a Mill Rate increase of 1.85 percent. With the reductions, the town's Mill Rate would be 31.36, an increase of 1.62 percent over last year.

The revised budgets to be sent to town meeting are as follows:

The Board of Selectmen will ultimately have to decide how to allocate the revised Capital and Non-recurring budget amount ten days before the budgets are sent to town meeting.  The meeting will be held on May 1 at 7pm in the Simsbury High School Auditorium. 

The town-wide referendum for the Capital Improvement Plan budget will be held on May 15 from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Henry James Memorial School. The items to be considered by voters will be the purchase of land from the Ethel Walker School in the amount of $2.05 million and the Simsbury School District Network Infrastructure project in the amount of $1.8 million.