Salem board sends $15.1 million budget to public meeting
Salem — Facing uncertainty from the state, the Board of Finance voted unanimously Thursday to approve a $15.1 million budget for the 2017-18 year that carries a 1-mill tax increase. The budget will be presented at a public meeting at 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 12 at Salem School.
The total budget of $15,069,851, which includes $10,548,225 for education, is a 1.27 percent decrease from the 2016-17 budget. The board also voted to cut $75,000 from the general government and capital items budgets, and those budgets will be finalized next week as First Selectman Kevin Lyden reviews items in the two budgets to cut.
Most of the Thursday night meeting was spent discussing what options the town has for offsetting expected cuts from the state.
Board clerk George Householder presented estimated cuts for state and federal grants, assuming a 15 percent decrease. He calculated the town would have a 1.4-mill increase to offset the cuts after the additional $75,000 cut to general government and capital items was approved.
Members had discussed using money from the town's unassigned fund balance of $2.41 million to reduce the tax burden in previous meetings and returned to the idea Thursday. Chairman T.J. Butcher explained that the unassigned fund balance is kept so high to account for unexpected expenses, such as a recent appropriation to replace tires on one of the fire department ladder trucks.
After about a half-hour of deliberation, the board reduced the unassigned fund balance by about $150,000, to 14.9 percent. This money, in addition to the budget reductions and a 1-mill increase, would help offset the expected $700,000 cut from the state.
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