Interested voters in Westbrook should make their way to Westbrook High School, 156 McVeagh Road, on Monday, May 9 at 7 p.m. to attend the town meeting called to approve or deny the proposed budget. The town is proposing a budget with a two percent increase in spending.

The Board of Finance approved a proposed budget of $31,907,606, a $629,309 or two percent increase. The town budget is proposed at $13,146,326 (a $380,357 or 3.0 percent increase) and the education budget is proposed at $18,761,280 (a $248,952 or 1.8 percent increase).

The increase in the town budget can be attributed in part to the inclusion of a third full-time police officer, as well as “the continued contract with an outside company for zoning work, as well as estimated health insurance increases due to rising costs.” according to Finance Director Donna Castracane.

Unlike neighboring towns Clinton and Old Saybrook, Westbrook passes its budget by town meeting instead of referendum, though that hasn’t always been the case. The town first started using town meetings in 2016 after then-first selectman Noel Bishop cited the declining referendum turnout. In 2015, only 245 voters came out to vote in the 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. referendum.

In 2020, with uncertainty about how to handle the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic swirling, an executive order gave towns the ability to pass the budgets on their own after a public hearing was held.

In 2021, the vote returned and the town actually held a referendum again as First Selectman John Hall explained to the Harbor News earlier in 2022, “people weren’t really assembling due to COVID so rather than have people in one room, we had a referendum.” However fewer than 100 people turned out to vote last year.

Town meetings town meetings take much less time both to conduct and set up and are less expensive than an all-day referendum, though referenda traditionally offer an 8- to 14-hour window for voters to participate while a town meeting requires participation at a specific time, which may not be practical for many would-be voters.

A citizen’s guide intended to inform voters before they vote about the budget and the state of the town’s finances is being finished and will be mailed directly to voters as well as posted on the town website, according to Executive Assistant Suzanne Helchowski.