Thursday, February 10, 2000 Older Editions

Budget 2001: A fiscal odyssey

By Taylor Armerding

It may not qualify as a space odyssey, but Town Manager Buzz Stapczynski still hopes the public will view his Fiscal Year 2001 budget as somewhat of a visionary document, all while preserving the best of the past.

That, in fact, sums up the title of the coming year's spending plan, called "Looking Forward -- Preserving our Best."

For any tax-paying masochists hoping to see the budget finally crack the $100-million barrier, it won't quite happen this year, although by the time voters get done with the Town Meeting warrant, spending will be well in excess of that figure, as it has been for a number of years.

But the basic budget is close -- almost $96.5 million, up about 4.1 percent from the current fiscal year's budget of $92.6 million. Stapczynski, who presented the budget to the Board of Selectmen on Monday night, says he cut more than $1 million from department head requests, "not because (those requests) didn't have merit, but because there were not sufficient funds to meet all the demands.

Perhaps the most visible of the rejected requests were for additional staff. Department heads had requested the equivalent of 21 new full-time positions. The manager cut that nearly in half, to 11 positions, including three for the police department (two officers and one dispatcher), and one each for public works, plant and facilities, Memorial Hall Library, community development and planning, elder services, accounting and finance.

The manager separated the highlights of the budget into several categories:

Environmental

"We're getting very green this year," Stapczynski says, admitting that he's talking about money to some extent, but adding that he really wants to focus on environmental issues. There are four areas where he plans to put special emphasis:

o Reducing the incineration of household trash. The budget includes money to increase curbside recycling, to add a second hazardous waste collection day per month, and a program to recover electronic wastes, such as computers, which are not supposed to go to the local incinerator.

There is also a Town Meeting article aimed at forming a regional hazardous waste collection facility (see related story, page 16).

o Improve drinking water quality by cleaning water mains, which are the primary source for discolored, or turbid, water.

o Acquire more open space, and improve the maintenance and use of existing open space. This also is supplemented by an article on the Town Meeting warrant that provides a fund to acquire open space.

o Turn the abandoned gravel pit at Recreation Park into playing fields and nature areas. A rendering of the proposed development of the site is the cover illustration of this year's budget proposal. It includes three new athletic fields, walking paths, more parking areas and a picnic area.

Schools

The manager's proposed school budget, at $38.7 million, has again increased substantially more than the budget overall, at 6.5 percent. However, Superintendent Dr. Claudia Bach has requested a budget of nearly $39 million, or a 7.2 percent increase. This includes an increase of 21.2 full-time-equivalent staff.

Stapczynski says another reason for the increase is the cost of special education, including out-of-district placements.

Capital Improvement Program

The manager's CIP for 2001 totals almost $46 million, and includes money for the general fund, sewer and water fund borrowing and reserves.

Other highlights

o Debt service is projected to decrease from about $10.7 million to $10.4 million, primarily because of a $733,000 reduction in debt payments for Memorial Hall Library.

o Health insurance is expected to increase by 3.4 percent, to about $3.5 million, which Stapczynski says is very reasonable, given an era of double-digit increases in health insurance premiums. He says this is due to "a very positive claims history and employees moving into lower-cost HMO-type plans.

And who pays?

The manager says the property tax covers 67.2 percent of the budget, "which will come as no surprise to local homeowners." Local fees and revenues account for 9.1 percent, and state aid adds another 10.7 percent.

Stapczynski says new growth is estimated to create $1.5 million in new tax revenue, which assumes that most of the increase will come from commercial growth rather than new housing starts.

He said there is no water rate increase expected in the coming year, but sewer rates will increase by 30 cents, from $2.12 to $2.42. The sewer budget is increasing 17 percent, he says, because of debt service and other costs associated with major sewer extensions.

The average household would pay about $36 more per year, he says.

State aid is "a major unknown," he says. He has estimated $10.3 million, based on an Education Reform aid increase of about $125 per student, or $245 million statewide, but he says Gov. Paul Cellucci has proposed only about half that amount.

"That will probably be a major fight in the Legislature," he says.