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Residents Overwhelmingly Approve Budgets

At a referendum on May 8, Clinton voters overwhelmingly passed the town and education budgets. The new total budget is $64,424,043, a $2,275,088, or a 3.6% increase. However, while spending increases at a higher rate, the tax rate is proposed to increase by only 1.44%.

Voters approved a town budget of $23,761,131 (a $385,053 or a 1.64% increase) by a vote of 628 in favor to 281 opposed and a Board of Education (BOE) budget of $40,662,912 (a $1,890,035 or 4.87% increase) by 574 in favor to 340 opposed.

This year’s turnout for the budget was 916 voters including 33 absentee ballots, which represents a turnout of about 12% of registered voters. This was the first referendum since 2008 with under 1,000 total voters. Last year turnout was 1,281 voters or about 11% of registered voters. Despite over 300 less voters participating, turnout in 2024 was actually one percent higher.

Reached for comment after the budget vote, Town Council Chairman Carrie Allen said, “I’m thrilled the two budgets have passed and that the council can continue to move forward with all the work at hand. “

In the approved town budget, there are no staffing position changes or changes to town-provided services. On the BOE side, there are no changes to programming, but there is a reduction of a part-time position involved in special education secondary transition and the reduction of a nurse position that had been used to help with management during the pandemic. Additionally, two mental health staff positions previously funded by a grant are now included in the BOE budget.

The capital portion of the budget provides money for projects like sidewalk installation, the replacement of fire department equipment as well as police vehicles, paving, exterior work on the Eliot House, upgrades to baseball fields, and removal of transfer station waste. The capital improvement projects on the BOE side include projects like technology replacement, facilities security, painting, flooring, field upgrades, window replacement, an HVAC replacement plan developed for the Joel and Eliot schools, and physical upgrades to the Joel Annex.

With both budgets passing on the first referendum for the fifth time in a row, it’s safe to say Clinton has shed its reputation for having an annual spring controversy centered around the budget.

Budget season used to be a big deal in Clinton, with referendum turnout annually in the 28-35% range. From 2009 to 2018 only once (2016) did voters pass both budgets at the first referendum. Public hearings used to be contentious, with people passionately arguing for or against the proposed budgets, and the town would be filled with “vote yes” as well as “vote no” signs.

However, since 2019, it’s largely been controversial no more.

Voters passed both budgets at one referendum in 2019. Then, in 2020, the referendum was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, the Town Council was allowed to pass a budget without a town-wide vote via an executive order. In 2021, the voters again approved both budgets at the first referendum, this time by a two-to-one margin. Since the return to approval by referendum in 2021, turnout has steadily declined.

A public hearing on the 2024-’25 budgets held in early April was sparsely attended compared to previous years and no speakers at the hearing spoke negatively about either proposed budget.

From 2009 to 2019, Town Hall used to see a fairly significant crowd show up to hear the budget results read and counting the votes could take close to an hour after polls closed. This year there were only a handful of town officials present and results were tabulated within seven minutes of the polls closing.