The theme at Monday’s budget hearing on Seymour’s proposed $55.9 million budget? How do we get more Seymour residents to go to the budget hearing?
The hearing is obviously important. It’s the public’s chance to share their thoughts on how their tax dollars are being spent.
Eight people spoke during a roughly 60-minute hearing at Seymour Middle School. Four of the speakers said the town needs to do more to get the public involved in the budget process.
“We don’t get information out to the taxpayers or the parents,” resident Cindy Dion said. “Look at this crowd. It’s pathetic, and I blame a lot on the town, the board of finance (and) the board of ed.”
Click the video above to watch Dion’s comments to the board of finance.
Another resident suggested the town do a mailing just prior to the public hearing to get more people involved.
About 60 people attended the public hearing.
Seymour town officials have the most transparent budget process, at least compared to neighboring Valley towns. The budget documents are posted online. First Selectman Kurt Miller used Facebook, Twitter and a robocall to let the public know about the hearing.
Members of the school board have also been appearing at various forums to explain their budget to the public.
Click the play button below to watch Miller explain how the town tries to bring the public into the process.
The combined town and school budget totals $55.9 million.
The proposed school budget totals $32.6 million. That’s a 2.99 percent — or $950,000 increase — over the current budget.
The school budget’s bottom line is about $67,000 less than the school district’s initial request to the town’s board of finance.
FYI: The public can learn more about the school budget when school board members Yashu Putorti and Kristen Harmeling stream a budget webinar with the Valley Indy at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday (March 31).
The webinar will stream on the ValleyIndy.org home page, and on the publication’s Facebook and Twitter pages.
The proposed town budget — including capital and contingency accounts, plus debt service — totals $23.2 million. That’s a 2.67 percent increase over the current town budget.
Breaking down the town side of the budget a bit more:
$17.5 million is town government expenses (2.82 percent increase).
$5.4 million is debt service.
$100,000 is going toward building the capital plan.
$65,000 is for the contingency fund expenditure.
If approved, the mill rate in Seymour would increase from 34.04 mills to 34.67 mills.
That means a single-family house assessed at $140,000 would see a tax increase of about $88.
A single-family house assessed at $200,000 would see a tax increase of $126.
Miller said the town side of the budget continues his administration’s ongoing effort to tame the mill rate without cutting services.
At the same time, Miller said the town, which received a bond upgrade last April, is trying to build up its fund balance for further financial stability. The town’s fund balance — that is, money on hand after expenditures — is roughly 8 percent of the town’s budget.
The town wants to get it to 10 percent, based on advice by numerous municipal finance gurus.
Miller said the town has a plan in place to stabilize the town’s finances. It includes bringing down the town’s debt ratio, which is purposefully scheduled to spike next year after a successful town vote to spend money to repair roads.
During the public hearing, former Seymour First Selectman Bob Koskelowski thanked the various boards and commissions for their commitment to Seymour, and hoped the budget would be approved by residents.
Click the play button below to watch his comments.
Seymour residents have a history of rejecting town and school budgets. The first town-wide vote on the budget is tentatively scheduled for April 28.
Click here for a ton of budget info provided by the town.
Click here for a ton of budget information from the school district.
Read the budget documents below, supplied by the town in advance of Monday’s hearing.
