The Board of Selectmen has set Thursday, May 21 as the date of the Budget Referendum to be held at the Mulvey Municipal Center in Westbrook. Beginning in December, the boards of Selectmen, Finance, and Education spend countless hours reviewing every single line item in the budget. The process is deliberately very thorough and all interested parties and appropriate staff are part of the process that ensures that all of our expenses and revenues are rigorously scrutinized in order to present a budget to our taxpayers that is prudent and conservative. We continue to provide the necessary services that you have come to expect of your municipal government and our excellent educational system.

There are many compelling aspects to the proposed budget:

• The total debt service is slightly less than nine percent for fiscal year beginning July 1, 2016.

• The recommended Board of Finance budget is $28,901,771.

• The town’s financial position is strong with a 13.8 percent fund balance margin.

• Westbrook has an outstanding tax collection rate of more than 99 percent

• Our current mil rate is 21.79.

• Credit rating Aa2

• Dependency on state aid is minimal at 4.3 percent

• Disciplined contributions to capital needs (two percent of town budget)

• Consistent funding of pension contributions (100 percent of annual required contributions to all plans)

Copies of the budget are available in the offices of the Selectmen and Department of Finance. Additionally, we now have a fully staffed Health Department and recently we have hired full-time personnel for our Social Services programs and our Senior Center activities that were necessary due to the increasing demand for these constituent individuals. I direct your attention to the following information that appeared April 28 on the Harbor News website Zip06.com:

“For the third time, the Government Finance Officers Association of the U.S. and Canada (GFOA) has awarded a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting to the Town of Westbrook for its comprehensive annual financial report (CAFR). In announcing the award, the GFOA wrote that the Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in the area of governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government and its management.”

Finally, it should be noted that in the November 2013 Connecticut Magazine, Westbrook was ranked #3 out of 39 towns of homes with an average median home sale of $175,000 for its low crime rate, cultural activities, community engagement and education programs.

Westbrook continues to provide the services and programs that all of us have come to expect. I encourage all of you who are eligible voters to vote at the Referendum on May 21.