Town officials are heading back to the drawing board after the proposed $119 million budget for the 2024-'25 fiscal year was rejected by voters at an April 16 referendum.

The proposed 2024-'25 budget of $119,080,224 was the result of a March 7 Board of Finance (BOF) vote to reduce the Town operating budget by $100,000 and the Board of Education budget by $200,000. The proposed Town budget was $36,956,226, representing a 3.57% increase from the 2023-'24 budget, while the education budget proposal was $71,957,151, a 4.8% increase from the current fiscal year. Debt service was responsible for $10,166,847 of the spending package. Overall, the proposal represented a 3.98% increase over the current 2023-'24 budget.

The proposed spending package was rejected in each of the town's five districts, with 1,688 voting against it and 1,300 in favor. Of the town's 16,243 registered voters, only 18.39% of voters participated in the referendum, an increase from the 2023-'24 budget vote, which garnered only 13% of voter participation.

The BOF met on April 23 (after press time) in a special meeting to discuss and take possible action on a revised budget.