SEYMOUR — Here are the questions and results from the April 17 budget referendum:
A. Shall the Town General Government Budget, as recommended by the Board of Finance of $27,124,976 for the fiscal year 2025 – 2026 be adopted?
Yes: 493
No: 719 (REJECTED)
B. Shall the Board of Education Budget, as recommended by the Board of Finance of $41,365,139 for the Town of Seymour for fiscal year 2025 – 2026 be adopted?
Yes: 465
No: 748 (REJECTED)
SEYMOUR – Voters rejected a $68.5 million town and school budget for fiscal year 2025 – 2026 during a referendum Thursday (April 17) at the Seymour Community Center.
Voters shot down the $27.1 million town side of the budget by a vote of 719 – 493.
They also shot down the $41.4 million Seymour Board of Education budget by a vote of 748 – 465.
Those numbers include absentee ballots.
(Left to right) Seymour Board of Finance member Beverly Kennedy talks with finance director Jay Vieira and First Selectwoman Annmarie Drugonis following Thursday's budget defeat.
The Seymour Board of Finance will now go back to the drawing board to make changes, according to finance board chairman Richard Demko. The finance board will meet at 7 p.m. Monday (April 21) at Seymour Town Hall.
Demko said the board has its work cut out, and can only reduce both the town and school budgets.
“We’ll be conducting a workshop to see where we’re going to cut and present a new recommendation for the next referendum,” Demko said.
A revised budget will be presented at a second referendum scheduled for 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. May 1 at the Seymour Community Center.
As for both budgets being rejected, Demko said he was disappointed.
“The town side was a very modest ask, and with the level of services we have in this town, I think a 1.9 percent increase is pretty fair,” Demko said. “As for the board of education, I really have no idea what we’re going to do there. I do know they’re already under budgeted. I’m not expecting there to be too much more of a cut to the school budget. I will absolutely not be responsible for any layoffs over at the board of education.”
The failed school budget carried an increase of $1.6 million, or 4 percent, over the current budget. The failed town budget carried an increase of $531,471, or 1.9 percent, over the current budget.
“I’m shocked but I’m not shocked,” First Selectwoman Annmarie Drugonis said. “The assessments killed us. We’ll go back to the drawing board. We got our insurance numbers in yesterday and we’ll go through all the numbers and look to where we can cut.”
Out of 11,728 registered voters in Seymour, about 10 percent cast ballots Thursday (April 17).
School board chairman Chris Champagne was not happy with the low voter turnout, and said the referendum being held during the same week as the school district’s spring break was bad timing.
“This is what happens when you get dominated by one group of people and the parents don’t come out and vote,” Champagne said. “As far as education, we’re at the bottom seventh percent in per pupil spending and it’s just going to keep getting lower and we’re going to end up like a town that doesn’t look like Seymour anymore. Maybe next year we’ll remember to not do this (budget referendum) when parents and teachers aren’t around.”
