Ledyard — A public hearing on the Town Council’s proposed 2018-19 budget and its 2.7-mill increase will be held April 10.

The council filed its proposed general government and education budget with the Town Clerk Friday after approving it at a meeting earlier in the week by an 8-1 vote. Councilor Kevin Dombrowski was the only councilor to vote against the measure.

The budget’s filing sets the stage for the public hearing and then a May 21 town meeting. Residents would then vote on the proposal at a referendum the following day, May 22.

The $56.5 million school and general government budget likely faces a difficult road to approval given the projected tax increase.

“It’s a difficult year as most people realize, and a lot of that is due to two things,” said Linda Davis, the chairwoman of Town Council. “There’s a reduction in revenue from the state and this is the first year that the school projects are being factored into the equation.”

Davis was referring to the addition of the debt payments for those projects being included in the budget. 

Davis has previously expressed some doubts about the ability of the proposal to pass, but she strongly encouraged residents to come to the public hearing so they can learn about the budget and provide their input to town officials.

“It would be really helpful for as many people to come out as can come out,” she added.

The proposed $24.7 million general government budget represents about a 4 percent increase over the current budget and calls for more than $4 million to be spent on the town’s debt obligations, which consists primarily of the town’s police station and two school building projects. 

The current budget called for just under $3 million to be spent on debt service payments.

Last year Ledyard received a more than $1.5 million cut in state aid, which town officials sought to make up through a series of midyear cuts and furloughs, as well as a supplemental tax bill. In 2018-19, officials are expecting another $400,000 cut.

Meanwhile the proposed $31.8 million education budget represents a 1.78 percent increase over the current budget, driven primarily by contractual obligations. The proposal also includes the reduction of 3.5 full-time certified positions, two of which would be reallocated to help address increased enrollment at the elementary schools, and suggests an increase in special education spending, as well as not replacing one of five retiring teachers.

The elimination of one of the culinary arts teaching positions at Ledyard High School was a serious point of contention during earlier Board of Education meetings.

“I’ve seen where people assume the Board of Education comes in high so we can cut, that’s not the case this year,” said Davis, adding she was confident the school board did the best it could. She also commended the school board for its strong communication throughout the budget process.

Town and school officials began their work facing a possible 4-mill tax increase. They have tried to trim spending to keep a tax increase to a minimum.

At the start of the budget process, Mayor Fred Allyn III asked all the town’s departments to come in with about a 10 percent reduction, which he then trimmed another $175,000 from. The Town Council cut another $142,000 during a series of budget workshops, said Bill Saums, chairman of the Town Council Finance Committee, at a meeting Wednesday night.

“Everybody took something and said here you go, here is our pound of flesh for the ten pounds you’ve got to cut off this year because we didn’t get it from the state,” said Councilor Tom Malone during the meeting Wednesday.

Those actions reduced a tax increase under the proposed budget to an estimated 2.7 mills, something councilors realize will still be tough for residents to stomach.

Davis said Town Council will continue to look for cuts and remain open to resident feedback. However, she added any additional cuts would likely impact town services such as roads and police.

“If people are looking for something less (than 2.7 mills) that’s OK, as long as they understand it is going to come from services,” she said.