Clarksburg Looking at Town Budget of $1.4M for Fiscal 2017
CLARKSBURG, Mass. — After several years of last-minute budget cuts and unhappy surprises, town officials are feeling optimistic about next year's budget.
"We are in a spot where we don't have to scramble and cut things," said Finance Committee Chairman Mark Denault on Monday. "I think it's probably the best budget we've seen at the beginning of budget season. ...
"I think we're in a good spot."
The draft fiscal 2017 spending plan for the town is $1,409,138, up 3.69 percent, or about $51,000, from this year. The proposed school budget is $2.6 million, up about $62,000 over fiscal 2016 after Finance Committee shaved off $14,000 in fuel costs.
Finance Committee member Lori-Ann Aubin calculate the overall budget as up 2.56 percent over this year, with some changes still expected.
"If we pay attention to what's happening to every other school district, really if we can come through with our school budget at near level funding and no one's losing their jobs — we are ahead of the game," she said.
"If we can maintain all the same services, that's huge."
The budget includes 2 percent cost-of-living increases for town employees and the new compensation and classfication plan approved earlier this year that will increase some workers' wages. It does not include any agreements that may be reached in the current negotiations with the Clarksburg Teachers Association.
The Finance Committee started out by level funding the budget and asking department heads to submit — and justify — any increases to their line items. Several were approved for the Highway Department and an increase in the town clerk's budget for the three elections in fiscal 2017. The assessor's office is also looking at about $10,000 for changing out the property assessment software because the state version is no longer being supported.
One of the larger reductions was in the price of heating oil. The committee, with input from Town Administrator Carl McKinney and Highway Foreman Kyle Hurlbut, projected a fuel cost of $2.15 per gallon. Last year, the town and school paid $3.38 a gallon. McKinney said the Berkshire Purchasing Group would like lock in the rate in August.
But health insurance continues to be problematic, with the town alone paying more than $260,000 a year in premiums.
"A big part of that line item has to be retirees," said Aubin, because the town only has a handful of employees.
Like most small towns, Clarksburg has been struggling with the cost of health insurance. Superintendent Jonathan Lev, who appeared to present the school budget, said he's been budgeting about a 9 percent increase a year.
"It's such an enormous line item every year," said Denault.
McKinney has been tasked with finding lower quotes and will be meeting with Lev and the teachers' union on possible plan changes.
"There's things I would have liked to have done quicker, faster but the wheels of government turn slowly," he said.
The current budget is based on expected state revenues in the governor's submitted budget.
"In two weeks, the House is going to submit their budget so it may have some hopefully good news," McKinney said.
He noted that he had attended the Ways & Means Committee hearings in Everett last month along with North Adams City Councilor and Massachusetts Municipal Association President Lisa Blackmer. Blackmer had pressed to keep the $42 million increase in unrestricted general government aid tied to the "consensus" rate of growth as presented in the governor's budget.
The MMA also pushed for greater Chapter 70 education aid and to update the calculations on minimum spending for schools.
McKinney said there was also a "productive discussion" regarding charter school reimbursement and that he had testified on the need for payment in lieu of taxes on state-owned property. Half the town's land is owned by the state.
"Thirteen years ago, we got $33,000. They came in and bought hundreds more acres of land and we got $20,000," he said.
"I asked them if they'd consider a carbon sequestration payment for all the air that we clean for Boston with our trees we have out here. We'll see how that flies."
Tags: clarksburg_budget, Finance Committee, fiscal 2017, municipal budget,
