Norwich — City Manager John Salomone has proposed a combined city and school budget totaling $138.6 million with a 4.39% spending increase that would require a 1.5% citywide tax increase.

Salomone’s proposed 2021-22 budget, presented to the City Council Monday, includes an $86.3 million school budget which calls for a $2.1 million or 2.5% increase.

That is less than the 3.95% increase requested by school officials but more than the city manager’s usual 2% increase for the schools.

The general government budget also contains funding for a fire services director recommended in a recently released fire services study. The general government budget of $48.7 million calls for a $2.7 million or 5.95% increase.

Salomone budgeted $140,000 for the fire services director, projected as a department-head level position, beginning in October to allow time to search for a candidate. The position already has met with opposition from the city’s one paid fire chief and five volunteer chiefs but was strongly recommended by the McGrath Consulting Group to address the long-standing tensions between the paid and volunteer departments and to oversee an improved integration of the departments and equipment.

“This is on the table, obviously it’s up to the council to decide if they want to fill this,” Salomone said. “It’s our responsibility to put it in there and give the council the flexibility to fill it.”

The proposed capital improvements budget totals $3.6 million, an increase of nearly $1 million to cover part of the fire study’s top recommendation to upgrade the city’s antiquated fire dispatch and communications system. Salomone said the city also will be applying for public safety grants for the dispatch system upgrades. The city also is awaiting word on whether its share of American Rescue Plan funding could be used for the fire dispatch upgrade.

Within the general government budget, Salomone also increased funding for Norwich Community Development Corp., the city’s economic development agency, from the long-standing total of $150,000 to $200,000. The NCDC board had requested an increase of $125,000.

The budget also includes a $50,000 increase for Otis Library, an outside entity, bringing the total for the library to $1.1 million. Salomone said the city has been gradually increasing the library budget when possible.

City salaries, with only the fire director as a new position, are projected to increase by $830,000. Part of the sharp increase is because nine positions in this year’s budget were funded for less than a full year and now will be full-year positions. Employee health insurance is projected to increase by $784,000 on speculation that many medical services were put off during the pandemic and now will be used by employees, Salomone said.

But while the 2021-22 budget does not include incorporation of any of its anticipated $21 million American Rescue Plan grant, Norwich expects to receive $3.5 million from the previous federal CARES Act relief package as a state-designated distressed municipality. That revenue will help offset most of the spending increases in the budget, reducing the projected citywide tax rate increase to 1.57%.

Despite the pandemic, city tax collections are on target, and other revenues, such as property transactions conveyance taxes and building permits, have exceeded budgeted amounts for this year, city Comptroller Josh Pothier said. The proposed 2021-22 budget used three-year rolling averages for most revenue projections.

Salomone’s proposed budget calls for a citywide tax rate of 42.72 mills, up by 0.66 mills from this year, a 1.57% increase. In addition, property owners in the central city paid fire district would pay 6.73 mills, up by 0.3 mills, and property owners in the five volunteer districts would pay an additional 0.37 mills on top of the citywide tax rate.

City Council departmental budget hearings will begin Tuesday at 6 p.m. with the city fire and police departments.

The first public hearing on the budget is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 15. After more than a year of remote-access meetings, City Council meetings are planned as in-person sessions, with limited capacity and an overflow room. All meetings still will be livestreamed at www.norwichct.org.

c.bessette@theday.com