Tyer Proposes $189M Pittsfield Budget, Up $10M

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The mayor is proposing a nearly $189 million budget for fiscal 2023 that is about $10 million higher than the this year's $179 million budget.

Mayor Linda Tyer's request to raise and appropriate $188,589,144 for the FY23 operating budget was referred to the Committee of the Whole on Tuesday.

Departmental deliberations will begin next week on Tuesday, May 17, with a public hearing on the budget and five-year Capital Improvement Plan, which was made available to the public on Tuesday.

The budget proposal includes $242,784 for the mayor's office, $109,262 for the City Council, $9,138,800 for the Fire Department, $11,927,437 for the Police Department, and $56,686,954 for unclassified spending.

The proposed school department budget is $72,398,262, which is a 7.56 percent, or $5,086,562, increase from this year. Most of the increase is in contractual obligations, which increased by about $4.7 million.


Within the school budget is $1,895,347 for administration, $55,822,847 for instructional, $4,526,341 for other school services, $6,372,746 for operations and maintenance, $472,358 for fixed costs, $68,074 for adult learning, $234,047 for acquisition of fixed assets, and $3,626,502 for tuition payments.

With $570,000 in school choice revenues and $50,000 in Richmond tuition revenues, the total budget amounts to $73,018,262.

Three orders related to the Community Preservation Fund were also referred to the Committee of the Whole: to Amend Order 45 of the 2021 Series, appropriating $974,480.93 for the FY22 Community Preservation Fund budget; to appropriate $670,317.00 from the FY22 Community Preservation Fund budget; and to appropriate $818,435.44 for the FY23 Community Preservation Fund budget.

Last summer, the council adopted an overall budget of $743,451.75 for the fiscal 2022 administration of the CPA. Eleven of the 13 applications received were deemed eligible and funded for a total request of $716,782, with a further reduction after two projects were further refined the costs of their projects.


Tags: fiscal 2023,   pittsfield_budget,   

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Extra Dalton Water Seats Stuck on Beacon Hill

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
DALTON, Mass.— The proposed amendment to the Fire District's Charter, which would expand the Board of Water Commissioners from three to five members, is still under state review.
 
With election season approaching, District Treasurer/Clerk Melanie Roucoulet said she has received several questions and concerns about when the Board of Water Commissioners will expand from three to five members.
 
During elections last May, voters approved a citizen's petition to change the board to five members in an effort to reduce the risk of Open Meeting Law violations. The change increases the number of members to have a quorum. 
 
According to state Rep. Leigh Davis' office, the bill was passed to be engrossed in the House and is currently within the Senate Rules Committee, Roucoulet said. 
 
State Sen. Paul Marks' office has written a letter to the committee asking for the bill to be released so it can continue through the legislative process. However, as of yet, there isn't an estimated timeline, Roucoulet said. 
 
She said she was informed it could take up to two years. 
 
Prudential Committee Chair Daniel Filiault explained that one challenge with the amendment is that it alters the charter, requiring a legal review to ensure it has the proper language .
 
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