ANSONIA – The Board of Aldermen are scheduled to meet Wednesday and vote on a budget to potentially send to voters, according to the town clerk’s office.

The meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. May 27 in the Aldermanic Chambers of city hall (253 Main St). Check the city website in case of schedule changes.

Ansonia’s proposed budget totals $69,146,155. It carries a mill rate increase of 1.8 mills – from 28.55 currently to 30.35.

If the Aldermen approve the budget in its current form, it will require approval from voters at a referendum. The city’s charter requires voter approval for budgets if they contain an increase of 3 percent or more in ‘net taxes to be collected.’

The Aldermen, if they approve a budget, will also be required to schedule a public referendum to be held within five days.

Click here for a recent budget story, including how the city hopes to use $4.5 million in state aid which was recently approved.

Click here for a recent story about the school budget.

Potential Tax Bills

If the budget were adopted without changes, a single-family home on Holbrook Street assessed at $180,000 would pay $324 more per year in taxes.

A house on Gardners Lane assessed at $248,000 would pay $446.40 more per year.

A house on High Acres Road assessed at $366,000 would pay $658.80 more per year.

Referendum Likely

Elected officials and city finance staff have said the city needs a tax increase to create a sustainable budget. The city encountered financial troubles after a fuel cell deal collapsed last year, leaving the city on the hook for millions of dollars.

Mayor Frank Tyszka, who was elected in November, has said his budget aims to fill budget holes relating to that deal.

If the budget goes to referendum, voters will be able to vote on the city and school budgets separately. If you vote ‘no’ on either budget, the referendum will also ask if you think the proposed budget is ‘too high’ or ‘too low.’

If both budgets pass at referendum, then they are adopted for the fiscal year beginning July 1.

If either budget fails, it goes back to the Aldermen for revisions. The Aldermen can then send a revised budget to a new referendum, or they can reduce the budget by enough so that another referendum isn’t required.

The school budget is currently set at the lowest number allowed under state law. The budget would flat-fund the district compared to the current year, and state law generally forbids lowering the school budget from one year to the next.

However, the school district received an extra round of funding from the state this year, as did other school districts, in a legislative package passed earlier this month. The state funding means the schools will be funded at about the level they had originally requested in January.