The tax board will reconvene next Tuesday (May 30) at 6:30 p.m. to finalize the budget.
The budget does not increase taxes.
Schools Could Cut Positions
The budget keeps education funding flat.
Prior to the meeting, The Valley Indy asked Schools Superintendent Matthew Conway what that means for the district.
“We would have to reduce positions in several areas to achieve this savings,” Conway said in an email.
The school district is legally obligated by union contract to provide a 3 percent increase to its certified staffers, according to a budget approved by the school board in March.
How the district will take care of increasing expenses with no new money remains to be seen. The hope is state aid will help.
The tax board set the school allocation at $17,761,947.
After Tuesday’s lonely public hearing, Conway said school officials have discussed in which areas specifically they would look to target those cuts.
But he said he wants to hold off on disclosing those plans publicly until there’s more certainty about next year’s budget.
“There’s a couple different scenarios and I don’t want people getting anxiety,” Conway said.
A former state legislator, Conway pointed to uncertainty over the state budget, which Derby relies on heavily for aid, as the biggest question mark.
“We’ll see what happens after everything works out,” Conway said. “It’s so early in the revenue process for the state.”
“I am optimistic, but again, we have prepared for all scenarios,” the superintendent said.
The Valley Indy streamed video of Tuesday’s hearing live on Facebook. Click the play button above to watch.
Tax Board Chairwoman Talks
In Derby this year, spending goals were very much a moving target, even after the tax board voted to set a spending plan last May.
The embedded chart at the bottom of this story shows what the tax board approved for each department last year.
But it also shows what Derby has actually spent this fiscal year — and actual spending is 2 percent larger than what was approved by the tax board.
Click here for a department-by-department breakdown comparing next year’s proposed budget with what the tax board actually approved last year.
The 2017 – 2018 preliminary Derby budget shows a $849,369 increase in spending compared to the approved budget, a 2.07 percent budget-to-budget increase.
The bottom line is $41,873,874.
One of the biggest increases — a 25 percent jump in bonded indebtedness, from $1,749,650 approved in the 2016 – 2017 budget to $2,187,443 for 2017 – 2018.
After Tuesday’s hearing, Judy Szewczyk, the chairwoman of the tax board, said that’s due to the city beginning to incur debt for a $31 million overhaul of its sewer system approved by voters in 2014.
(That means, presumably, your sewer bills are finally going up to pay for new pump stations and other repairs)
She said the board will try to hold the line on taxes — provided there’s no sudden windfall of cash from the state.
“We’re going to do everything possible to keep the mill rate level, and just waiting to see what happens with revenue,” she said.
She declined t to say where specifically additional money could go in the budget if such a windfall were to materialize.
“Nothing’s impossible,” she said. “I just can’t see them saying ‘You’re going to get a bunch more money,’ because they’re so hard-pressed.”
Here is a department by department comparing the proposed Derby budget to what the tax board approved last year, followed by a document that includes a column on actual spending this year.
TOTAL BUDGET
The 2017 – 2018 preliminary Derby budget shows a $849,369 increase in spending compared to the budget approved a year ago.
Mayor’s Office:
Now: $158,667
Next year: $163,786
3.22 percent increase
Probate Court
Now: $8,434
Next year: $7,958
5.2 percent decrease
Finance Committee
Now: $4,000
Next year: $4,000
No increase
Town Clerk
Now: $249,433
Next year: $224,649
9.9 percent decrease
Registrar of Voters
Now: $48,990
Next year: $55,340
12.9 percent increase
Legal Services
Now: $225,400
Next year: $267,900
18.8 percent increase
Data Processing
Now: $59,133
Next year: $70,000
18.3 percent increase
Treasurer’s Office
Now: $82,600
Next year: $88,600
7.2 percent increase
Insurance
Now: $618,559
Next year: $646,305
4.48 percent increase
Retirement
Now: $1,195,619
Next year: $1,183,202
1.03 percent decrease
Employee Benefits
Now: $6,665,718
Next year: $7,067,293
6 percent increase
Finance
Now: $160,558
Next year: $172,770
7.6 percent increase
Payroll Taxes
Now: $507,484
Next year: $501,971
1.08 percent decrease
Tax Collector
Now: $116,218
Next year: $116,254
0.03 percent increase
Assessor
Now: $113,450
Next year: $117,672
3.72 percent increase
Auxiliary Police
Now: $11,000
Next year: $17,605
60 percent increase
Police Department
Now: $3,796,853
Next year: $3,810,712
0.36 percent increase
Fire Department
Now: $255,929
Next year: $264,717
3.4 percent increase
Emergency Management (OEM)
Now: $15,500
Next year: $15,500
No increase
Fire Marshal
Now: $122,173
Next year: $117,971
3.4 percent decrease
Public Hydrants
Now: $229,500
Next year: $245,903
7.1 percent increase
Misc Capital
Now: $602,950
Next year: $591,968
1.8 percent decrease
Highway Department
Now: $1,715,580
Next year: $1,711,161
.25 percent decrease
Electricity
Now: $493,000
Next year: $505,000
2.43 percent increase
Sanitation
Now: $1,277,348
Next year: $1,277,348
No increase
Parks and Recreation
Now: $258,562
Next year: $258,519
0.16 percent decrease
Recreation Department
Now: No dollar amount given
Next year: No dollar amount given
Health Services
Now: $277,309
Next year: $301,345
8.6 percent increase
Library
Now: $484,022
Next year: $502,933
3.9 percent increase
Cemetery
Now: $600
Next year: $600
No increase
Building Inspector
Now: $164,183
Next year: $145,361
11.4 percent decrease
Community Development
Now: $107,350
Next year: $109,484
1.9 percent increase
Flood Control
Now: $15,550
Next year: $15,550
No increase
Planning & Zoning
Now: $100
Next year: $100
No increase
Inland Wetland Commission
Now: $200
Next year: $200
No increase
Senior Center
Now: $206,582
Next year: $214,152
3.6 percent increase
Parking Division (37)
Now: $220,220
Next year: No money allocated
Bonded Indebtedness
Now: $1,749,650
Next year: $2,187,443
25 percent increase
LOCIP Funds
Now: $109,507
Next year: $200,762
83 percent increase
City Hall Maintenance
Now: $310,721
Next year: $301,345
3 percent decrease
City Wide Agencies
Now: $223,121
Next year: $227,661
2 percent increase
City Wide Fuel
Now: $166,000
Next year: $166,000
No increase
Budget Working Balance
Now: $122,154
Next year: $130,668
6.9 percent increase
City Engineer
Now: $77,500
Next year: $68,500
11.6 percent decrease
Board of Education
Now: $17,761,947
Next year: $17,761,947
No increase
Youth Services Bureau
Now: $35,131
Next year: $35,714
1.6 percent increase
TOTAL BUDGET
Now: $41,024,505
Next year: $41,873,874
2.07 percent increase
Derby Proposed Budget Info by The Valley Indy on Scribd
