The Shelton Board of Aldermen voted unanimously Thursday to approve a city budget for 2016 – 17 that board President John Anglace said makes everyone in town happy, and everyone in surrounding towns envious.
The $122,384,654 budget for the fiscal year starting July 1 includes a spending increase of $162,138 over the current year’s budget and no change in the tax rate, which will remain at 22.31 mills.
“Once again, the Board of Aldermen is proud, privileged and pleased to adopt a budget that allows everyone the opportunity to meet the increased financial demands made upon their limited resources from the state and federal governments while maximizing community services,” Anglace said in a statement just prior to the unanimous vote.
He pointed out that Connecticut’s sluggish economy, its troubled state budget, and senior citizens who have had to make do without an increase this year in their Social Security checks have made it difficult for many residents to make ends meet. Businesses are moving jobs out of state and property values are sinking, he said.
But he repeated a boast often heard from Mayor Mark Lauretti that the city’s low taxes and spending restraint is “the tax envy of surrounding towns.”
“There’s no issues,” Anglace explained in an interview with the Valley Independent Sentinel.
The Aldermen approved a $1.6 million increase for the board of education, the same increase as last year, and everyone seems satisfied, he said.
Board of Education Chairman Mark Holden agreed.
“It wasn’t everything we asked for, but the mayor and our superintendent worked together well,” Holden said.
It helped that medical insurance claims have been low. Holden said the school board self-insures for employee medical costs, and the favorable claims rate has been a boon to its financial position this year.
The school district will be able to hire eight new employees, including two special education teachers, two social workers, two English language learner specialists for students who don’t speak English as their first language, one library media center specialist who will be shared by two elementary schools, and two part-time secretaries for the curriculum and facilities departments.
“It’s actually the best budget for the Board of Education since I began working with the board,” said Holden, who is in his fifth year on the school board.
The lone Democrat on the eight-member Board of Aldermen, Jack Finn, said he voted with the majority after seeing that funding was continued for the Senior Citizen Center.
Finn, often the lone voice of dissent in Aldermen’s meetings, said he disagreed with a few decisions, but not enough to vote against the total package.
Judson W. Crawford, a member of the Senior Center Committee, was not happy with the funding for the center, however. The Aldermen increased the Senior Center’s regular payroll account by $24,000, but cut $41,114 from the account for part-time employee payrolls, a net loss of $17,114.
Crawford said he would prefer to see Senior Center Acting Director Doreen Laucella, who is currently only a part-time employee, promoted as the center’s official full-time director.
