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04/07/2020 03:56 PMIn this unprecedented time of crisis, more than a few policies and procedures have been altered or suspended as the coronavirus pandemic continues to shape the way societies and governments function. In Madison and many other Connecticut municipalities, that means there will be a new budget process.
On March 21, Governor Ned Lamont issued an executive order suspending requirements for in-person voting, and further saying that the Board of Selectmen “shall authorize the budget-making authority within said municipality to adopt a budget...and to set a mill rate.”
That budget-making authority, in Madison’s case, is the Board of Finance (BOF). First Selectman Peggy Lyons and BOF Chair Jean Fitzgerald said they have been working over the past few weeks to try to set a schedule and lay out a procedure for the new budget process, which will culminate with the BOF voting on a final budget and mill rate in May.
The BOF also held a workshop last week, voting on a pared-down budget that will be printed and made available to residents for comment over the next month or so.
Despite the suspension of in-person voting and town meetings, the State of Connecticut has laid out several requirements that municipalities must still meet to cover public participation and transparency requirements.
In an earlier executive order signed March 14, Lamont amended open meeting regulations to allow virtual or online meetings, as long as “the public has the ability to view or listen to each meeting or proceeding in real time, by telephone, video, or other technology,” and that recordings or transcriptions be made available in a timely manner.
Fitzgerald told The Source that she and other town officials will be doing everything possible to solicit public participation in the process, accepting public comments and questions via email, which will be read out at public meetings, and hopefully allowing live participation during the budget hearing.
“It’s just a matter of the technology,” Fitzgerald said.
The draft budget will also be available on two separate occasions in The Source during the month of April, according to Fitzgerald, even though Lamont’s executive order suspended the requirement that municipalities run budget documents in local newspapers.
The final virtual budget hearing, where public comments will be read and addressed, will take place on April 29, Fitzgerald said, with the BOF taking its final vote on May 5 on the budget.
Despite the fact that the pandemic has essentially eliminated the direct democratic process of having residents vote to approve or not approve an annual budget, Fitzgerald said she hopes the new process might actually “boost our interaction with the public.”
“The public hearing in all honesty...is not highly attended,” she said. “Our hope is actually we’ll have more participation by doing it this way. There’s a slew of reasons why people either don’t realize [the budget process] is happening, or the weather affects it sometimes, seniors driving at night affects it sometimes.”
Budget So Far
Fitzgerald emphasized that what the BOF voted on last week—the draft that is going to be presented to the public—is not a “done deal,” and that she and the other members of the BOF will continue to craft it as they take into account whatever input the public has.
“This is just the place in which we are going to begin our discussions,” she said.
The overall recommended town and schools budget is about $87.2 million, an increase of about $2.4 million, or 2.80 percent over last year. The town operational budget, including capital expenses and debt service, is about $28.5 million, an increase of about $1.7 million over last year, or 6.51 percent. The schools’ budget came in at about $58.7 million, an increase of about $631,000, or 1.09 percent.
If the budget is adopted as-is, the anticipated mill rate would rise by 0.32, resulting in a $113 increase for a $10,000 annual tax bill.
The town reached these numbers by cutting requests from the library and Beach & Recreation—specifically limiting deployment of lifeguards and gate guards at the beaches—and then essentially denying any other requested increase that town departments had made.
One exception to this is the Ambulance Association. Though the BOF denied a request for a $253,000 increase last year, Fitzgerald said it would now grant the association that full amount, which was “a top priority” for the town in the face of the ongoing pandemic.
“The board was unanimous in its thoughts that they are a key member of this town,” BOF member Filmore McPherson said. “They’re getting what they need.”
Lifeguard and gate guard staffing would be cut to five days a week instead of seven, according to Fitzgerald, which is something the town had already considered when it discussed these things last year.
The budget will also draw approximately $500,000 from the undesignated fund balance to ensure the BOF can reach those numbers, Fitzgerald said. That money that will eventually be returned to the town’s coffers, but that return can be spread out over “two to three years,” preventing a spike in taxes.
“The purpose of [the undesignated funds] is for a rainy day,” she added. “I think it’s pouring. It’s taxpayers’ money, and we should be using that as much as possible during this unprecedented time.”
The exact amount needed to reach the target mill rate and budget increase will depend on some factors that have yet to be determined, according to Fitzgerald and McPherson.
Cutting money from the library—approximately $108,000—took up a large portion of the discussion at the workshop last week, and Fitzgerald admitted was “one of the hardest things” for the BOF to decide.
Because of all the uncertainty looming ahead, including not even knowing when the new building will open, or when it does, how much its operating costs will increase by, Fitzgerald said the BOF would rather monitor those things going forward, and potentially provide them with a special appropriation “if necessary.”
“We value the library, we understand that the town voted for it, but these are unprecedented times,” Fitzgerald said. “We’re just trying to find ways in which to...not give money to things [when] we’re not sure of what the need is going to be, knowing that we can support them...We feel pretty secure with a healthy unprecedented fund balance…[that] we would be able to help them.”
Any surplus funding that went to the library would also not necessarily be returned to the town, according to Fitzgerald and McPherson, because the library operates as a separate entity, which was another consideration when the BOF made its initial decision.
The library has hired a handful of new staff members for its larger space, Library Director Sunnie Scarpa told The Source recently, and has also been continuing to run programs and provide digital services during the pandemic shutdown.
One option the BOF considered during their workshop was funding the library its full request of $257,000, which would require an additional $100,000 from the undesignated fund balance to be infused into the town’s Capital Improvement Program (CIP).
In the longer term, Fitzgerald said she felt the town was in pretty good shape financially, even with the huge amount of unknowns, including potential impacts on tax collection rate and the prospect of a national or global recession.
She referenced how Madison had weathered Superstorm Sandy, having enough cash on hand to deal with the immediate consequences of destruction and repairs until federal and state reimbursements rolled in.
“We are a town that saves, and a town that constantly does budget forecasting and [looks] forward to situations...I think that’s really important. I think this town has always...saved, [and] we’ve projected, and we’ve put ourselves in a very strong financial position that we will be able to absorb, to the best of what we know right now, a recession,” Fitzgerald said. “There is no immediate danger to this town right now, financially.”
Residents can provide comments on the budget by emailing the Board of Finance at bof@madisonct.org.