NEW FAIRFIELD — The possibility of cuts in the 2023-24 proposed municipal budget has some residents saying that they are concerned as well as upset that elected officials are not listening to them.
Residents at the Board of Finance’s heavily-attended March 29 budget meeting expressed overwhelming support for the budget plan, but their calls for the board to approve them without cuts didn’t deter talks about possible reductions.
The spending plan before the finance board includes $40.7 million for school operations, $12.8 million for town operations, $8.2 million for debt service and $7.6 million for medical insurance contributions.
At the meeting, two Board of Finance members suggested cutting the school budget to a zero percent year-over-year increase, which would be a $2.5 million reduction in proposed spending. No motion was made to do the cuts, but the suggestion still raised concerns among residents and school officials.
A major cut like that would “deny children the education they deserve and be tantamount to educational malpractice,” Schools Superintendent Kevin Craw said.
“For every $500,000 we have to cut from the schools’ budget, we will have to cut six certified and two noncertified positions,” he said. “Cutting teaching positions will lead to larger class sizes, reduced course and program offerings and co-curricular offerings.”
The $45.5 million budget Craw presented in January included funds for school district operations and medical insurance contributions. Since then, Board of Finance Chair Wes Marsh said the medical insurance amount rose from $4.8 million to $6.5 million due to increased expense projections — bringing the total to nearly $47.2 million.
Before sending it to the Board of Finance, the Board of Selectmen cut more than $207,000 from the proposed operating budget and removed about $1.23 million from the capital budget due to pressures such as rising utility and paramedic service costs.
Further reductions could result in cuts to municipal staffing and negatively impact town services such as plowing and road repairs, as well as programs offered through the library and senior center, First Selectman Pat Del Monaco said in a statement.
In addition to overwhelming support, attendees of the finance board’s March 29 budget meeting expressed disappointment and frustration that the board considered cuts despite calls for the budgets to be approved as they were.
“I was hopeful this year … that we wouldn’t end up in the same place we were in last year, where the people of the town were begging you to put it out to vote. But we’re in the exact same place again,” resident Don Kellogg said. “It’s appalling.”
As in this budget season, residents showed overwhelming support for the budgets as presented last year and called on the Board of Finance to bring them to a town meeting. Efforts to do so, however, were stifled by the board’s inability to break a tie vote last year. After countless comments from the public, hours of deliberations and several failed attempts, the board finally found common ground and approved the budgets for town meeting, where they passed.
Once again, New Fairfield residents are calling on the board to not ignore their input.
“I ask the Board of Finance to listen to the voters and do what they need to do to keep our operational budget as close to proposed as possible,” resident Jeff Giuliano said during the board’s March 29 budget meeting.
The proposed cut to the 2023-24 education budget would “disseminate the schools,” and cause people to leave New Fairfield, Kellogg said.
“My wife and I have already started talking about moving, and we’re not the only ones,” he said. “You will lose people — you will lose tax base.”
The Board of Finance’s final budget meeting is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. April 12, via Zoom.
