ANSONIA — Members of the Ansonia Board of Aldermen May 5 voted to trim the city’s proposed budget by some $173,000 and to leave the school budget untouched.
A referendum on the two budgets is scheduled for 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, May 9 at the Ansonia Armory, 5 State St.
Voters previously rejected both budgets at a referendum on April 25.
The current budget year is 2024 – 2025, which ends June 30. The proposed budgets cover the 2025 – 2026 fiscal year, which starts July 1.
Bottom Lines
The revised city side of the budget now totals $29,879,532. That is a 1.27 percent spending increase compared to the current budget.
The school budget remained unchanged from April 25 at $39,560,719. That is a 5.28 percent spending increase compared to the current budget.
The two budgets combined set the mill rate at 29.39 mills. That is a 2.9 mill rate increase – or a 10.9 percent increase – over the current mill rate of 26.49.
Potential Property Tax Bills
If voters approve the budget as-is, a single-family home on Holbrook Street assessed at $180,000 would pay $522 more next year in taxes.
A house on Gardners Lane assessed at $248,000 would pay $719.20 more next year.
A house on High Acres Road assessed at $366,000 would pay $1,061.40 more next year.
Students Urge Aldermen To Leave School Budget Alone
Two legislative meetings were held May 5 at Ansonia High School. The first was a public hearing. The second was an Aldermen meeting to discuss and revise the budget for a second referendum.
About 125 people attended the meeting.
Twenty-six people spoke at the public hearing prior to the Aldermen’s meeting. Most of the discussion centered around the board of education’s budget request.
Half of the speakers at the public hearing were students in the Ansonia school system. All the students who spoke said spending reductions for education would directly affect them.
Jadelynn Garrido, a senior at Ansonia High School, said the schools are struggling as-is, pointing to the condition of the auditorium as an example.
“This school is already at its wit’s end with very little funding. You can see the stage which you are sitting on right now, scratched up. It’s covered in tape. Our walls here have holes in them, half of the stuff doesn’t even work, and our speakers don’t even work,” Garrido said.
She said a career pathway program she participates in is being cut.
“When it comes to this school, half of the opportunities that we have are already barely there. I was part of the criminal justice pathway, and that pathway has since been canceled,” she said. “They allowed the seniors to finish out this year, as the last class to take that criminal justice pathway. We now no longer have classes for the up-and-coming students.”
Weston Ahearn, a junior at the high school, said spending reductions would endanger all of the school’s career pathway programs.
“These are the things that make us students stand out to colleges and give us scholarships,” Ahearn said. “Without this budget passing, it will affect every student and teacher, and Ansonia Public Schools.”
Tyler Severino, a senior who interned with the schools’ IT department, said that the schools are only asking for what they need to function. He said he saw firsthand the schools’ lack of resources during his internship.
“These cuts aren’t getting rid of any luxuries. They’re getting rid of essential and basic needs we have at our schools and for our students. We can’t afford to lose them,” Severino said.
Three speakers said they can’t afford any increases in the education budget.
Joseph Brancato said he’s been living in Ansonia for 35 years, but that he’d be leaving the city if the tax situation doesn’t improve. He said that more money won’t solve problems in the school system.
“I don’t think that throwing more money at education or anything else in this town is going to help anything. If people want to do it, they can do it,” Brancato said. “I went to school where I had to walk to school at least a mile each way, through rain or snow.”
The public hearing briefly devolved into a shouting match after city resident Ralph Giamattei told the student speakers that they don’t pay taxes.
“You don’t have any skin in the game,” Giamattei said. “You guys don’t pay taxes on your house.”
Tax board chairman Gary Cassetti said the students need the money. Giamattei said students can learn in large classes.
“I went to school, there was thirty kids in a class. And guess what, we all learned,” Giamattei said.
“They need it, we want to take care of them. Don’t preach to us, we want to make sure there’s money for education,” Cassetti said.
Superintendent of Schools Joseph DiBacco said during the hearing that the schools need continued support in order to thrive.
“Our schools are at a critical point. The gains we have made are fragile. Continuing to invest in our district is not about education — it’s about our community, our workforce, and our future,” DiBacco said.
Aldermen Action
After the public hearing, the Aldermen voted to reduce the city side of the proposal by $173,000 and to send the reduced city budget to referendum.
The majority of Aldermen voted in favor of sending the education proposal to voters again.
The Aldermen said the public hearing demonstrated that people support the schools’ request, even if the last referendum vote didn’t.
The Aldermen also referred to a document circulated by the Ansonia Board of Education outlining where they planned to make cuts, if forced to.
The first things on that chopping block were new AP math and science textbooks, musical instruments, art materials, after-school programs at the elementary and middle school, and one school resource officer position, according to the document. It says those cuts would save about $189,000.
However, Alderman Steven Adamowski said the April 25 referendum showed school spending needs to shrink. He suggested the Ansonia Board of Education shoot for a 3.5 percent spending increase – as opposed to the 5.28 percent spending increase.
“I could certainly support that for the school system, but under the circumstances of a defeated referendum, I could not support just going back with the same number. I think that tells us that we’re just not listening to the taxpayers,” Adamowski said.
Budget director Kurt Miller said getting to that 3.5 percent number would require about $670,000 in spending reductions.
Ansonia Board of Education President Richard Bshara said getting to that number would require cutting all middle school sports, all elementary after-school programs, high school junior varsity sports, and implementing pay-to-play for high school varsity sports.
Some of the Aldermen pointed to the turnout of the referendum, which was about ten percent. They said that it’s worth asking one more time for the same request.
“Someone referred to it as a mandate. It was not,” said Alderman Dan King.
The Aldermen also voted to post “explanatory text” at the Armory during the next referendum. The text would state how much of an increase the city and schools’ budget requests are.
The questions on Friday’s ballot are as follows:
Shall the city portion of the budget, as recommended by the board of aldermen of $29,879,532 for the fiscal year 2026 be adopted?
Shall the board of education portion of the budget, as recommended by the board of aldermen, $39,560,719 for the City of Ansonia for the fiscal year 2026 be adopted?
Voters will also be able to vote“too high” or“too low” on each of the proposed budgets.
At the upcoming referendum, voters could again approve both budgets, only one budget, or neither budget. Any rejected budget goes back to the Aldermen again for revisions.
Why Is The Ansonia Budget Going To Voters?
The budget requires public referendum approval because of charter changes proposed by Mayor David Cassetti’s administration and approved by voters in 2015.
The charter requires voter approval for any budget with an increase in‘net taxes to be collected’ of more than 3 percent.
The revised budget includes $40,971,910 in net taxes to be collected. That’s an increase of about 8.2 percent, compared to the $37,864,585 in the most recent budget.
The previously rejected budget included a 9 percent increase in net taxes to be collected.
This is the first budget to require referendum approval since the charter changes were made.
The old system saw the Ansonia Board of Apportionment and Taxation approve annual budgets. That responsibility was transferred to the Aldermen, and the new language regarding net taxes to be collected was added.
