by Jeff Shmase
LYNNFIELD – Selectmen adopted a $40 million budget on Monday night for fiscal year 2011 that represents a nearly level-funded spending plan, keeps staffing levels and services intact, and maintains the town reserve accounts at a number town officials can live with.
The next step in the budget process occurs next Monday when the Finance Committee votes its budget. If there is a discrepancy, the two boards will try to seek common ground to present to Town Meeting April 26. Ultimately, Town Meeting will determine the final budget figure, but if history is any indication, Town Meeting typically follows the boards’ recommendations.
The budget is the culmination of a four-month-long process that started with a town wide department head summit in which Town Administrator William Gustus called for level-funded budget requests for next year.
The spending plan selectmen approved represents a 0.88 increase from this year, or $351,040.90. The employee benefits category represents the largest spending hike of $412,000 from this year. The town is anticipating big spending jumps in pension contributions, retiree health insurance and health insurance for school employees.
Many of those increases will be offset by savings in the town’s debt and interest account, which are decreasing by a combined $373,000. That decrease will also reduce the amount the town can raise in the tax levy from 2.5 percent to approximately 2.2 percent.
To help balance the budget, selectmen approved a plan that uses nearly $900,000 from the town’s reserve funds: $250,000 from the stabilization account, $100,000 from the capital facilities maintenance fund and $541,000 from free cash. The town will still have about $2 million in reserves, about five percent of the total budget, if Town Meeting adopts the selectmen’s budget.
“This is an excellent budget given the constraints we were under,” Selectman Al Merritt said. “It was a hard job to get here, but it’s a budget that is good for the town and one that can get business done.”
The School Department, the most expensive of all town departments, will see a one percent increase from this year, or $180,000. During the school’s public hearing Feb. 23, the figure was $231,000. Since then the department learned that two teachers will not be returning and with some minor tweaking, the number was adjusted to $150,000.
Gustus in consultation with school staff then decided to transfer $30,000 from capital funding for operating costs to get the figure to $180,000. The school system will use $30,000 in federal stimulus funding to help support its capital plan to bolster special education technology.
This budget will allow the schools to offer online courses at the high school and hire girls lacrosse coaches. A therapist would be hired and an elementary school psychologist position would go from part-time to full-time.
Gustus said he was not certain how a projected deficit in the town’s snow and ice account would be covered, but he thinks money is available in the Department of Public Works budget.
“If it’s not sufficient, we would hold a deficit into fiscal year ‘11 and use another revenue source to cover it,” he said.
In a related item, selectmen were presented with a capital budget of $270,766, but took no action on making a recommendation. That will likely happen at the board’s next meeting on March 29.
Gustus listed his priorities for spending that money in the following manner: school technology - $220,000; police cruiser - $33,000; firefighter gear - $10,000; database program for the Town Clerk - $4,866; weights and measures equipment - $2,900.
The capital budget could increase if state aid figures change. Gustus built in a 10 percent state aid decrease, and while Gov. Deval Patrick has proclaimed he will level fund local aid, Gustus said he heard the figure could be a five percent cut. If it is, that would give the town another $250,000 to use on capital expenditures.
