Oxford Town Budget Carries 4.1 Percent Increase

A proposed town budget for the 2010 – 2011 fiscal year carries a $521,000 spending increase.

The spending plan, which was approved by the Board of Selectmen last week, represents an increase of 4.1 percent over the current budget.

The budget is now with the town’s Board of Finance. Its members may choose to make reductions to the budget, which totals $13,205,118. They’ll get cracking during workshops next week.

Both the town budget and the town’s capital plan are posted on Oxford’s Web site.

First Selectwoman Mary Ann Drayton-Rogers said the Board of Selectmen met for about a month reviewing department requests to produce what she called a lean” budget.

The budget meets the needs of the taxpayers and moves the town forward in a frugal way,” she said.

Drayton-Rogers said the main drivers in the budget are health insurance costs and capital purchases.

2010 – 2011 Budget Increases:

  • $251,105 – Employee Health Benefits – Health and life insurances, pensions, workers compensation, unemployment benefits and social security.
  • $200,036 – Utilities, supplies and salaries
  • $70,000 – Capital requests

TOTAL: $521,141 spending increase

The budget includes a $1.8 million capital plan, approved at a town meeting Monday.

The plan calls for road improvements, town vehicle purchases and repairs to town buildings.

Road improvements in the plan include paving Great Hill Road between Peach Farm Hill and Route 67. Other roads to tap include: North Mark Drive, Scott, Wilson, Newsom, Harpin, Chestnut Tree Hill and Seth Den Roads.

The capital plan also includes building repairs at town hall and other town buildings.

In addition, vehicles will be purchased this year for the fire department, police department, public works, the building and conservation departments, senior center and Selectmen’s office.

Drayton-Rogers said included in the capital plan is a lease /purchase program that would allow the town to payoff the vehicles over a period of five years.

The town budget currently shows no increase to the town’s 20.44 mill rate. Whether that remains unchanged depends on the Board of Education budget, which is still being prepared.

I hope the Board of Education uses their due diligence in preparing their budget,” Drayton-Rogers said.

School Budget

The Finance Board is waiting for the Board of Education to present its budget, which was due March 3.

Rose McKinnon, chairman of the Board of Education, said Tuesday the reason the delay in filing the budget was due to missing information on enrollment projections and insurance costs.

We are still waiting for that information to come in to figure out what the final numbers will be,” she said.

The Board of Finance granted an extension until March 17.

The school board held a lengthy meeting Monday night to discuss the superintendent’s recommended budget for next year.

Preliminary numbers show a $25,131,402.67 education budget, an increase of 3.76 percent — or $910,942 — over the current budget.

The board is scheduled finalize its budget at a special meeting on March 16.

A town meeting to accept the budget is scheduled for May 3 followed by a referendum on Tuesday, May 11.

Keep local reporting alive. Donate.ValleyIndy.org