SEYMOUR – The third time was definitely the charm for Seymour’s town and school budgets, which voters approved at a third referendum Thursday at the Seymour Community Center.
Voters approved the $26,043,005 town side of the budget by a vote of 827 – 535. Voters also approved the $38,158,839 Board of Education budget by a vote of 772 – 588.
The combined town and school budgets, which total $64,201,844, carry a mill rate increase of .39 mills. The new mill rate is 35.98 mills. That translates to the average single-family home assessed at $200,000 having to pay $78 more in taxes for the next fiscal year, which begins July 1. NOTE: THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE OVERSTATED THE TAX INCREASE.
More than a dozen town and school officials gathered at the Community Center to wait for the results of the daylong referendum. While both budgets passed on the third try, the mood was not very celebratory. That’s because since the two previous budget referendums were rejected by voters, once on May 4, and again on May 18, the Seymour Board of Finance made some pretty significant reductions to both the town and school budget’s bottom lines.
The original combined town and school budgets presented to voters at the first referendum was $65,172,94, which had a mill rate increase of 1.59 mills. The finance board since slashed more than $971,000 from both budgets.
Seymour First Selectwoman Annmarie Drugonis and Board of Education Chairman Chris Champagne agreed they were glad to see the budget process come to an end. However, making up for the lower bottom lines dealt by the finance board will prove to be a challenge, they said.
“I think this is going to be a very stressful year for both sides,” Champagne said. “Now that the vote passed, we’ll get back to work and decide what to do.”
Champagne could not say whether any layoffs would happen until the board sits down and goes over the budget.
Champagne said the board previously made more than $520,000 in reductions in response to the finance board previously reducing the budget’s bottom line. Those included reductions in building maintenance, custodial overtime, not replacing a part-time secretarial position and a middle school social studies teacher and technology.
Drugonis said while she’s happy the budget passed, it’s going to be a tough year for the town, as well. She said no layoffs will be necessary.
“We’ll have to do more with less,” Drugonis said. “We will be able to function, In a way, this is a good thing. It teaches us all that we have to tighten our belts. We all have to do it at home, and we have to do it at the town, as well. Services and people will remain, however the amount of times we’ll be able to go out and do some things, like maintenance and repairs, may be less.”
