2024-25 Stonington Budget Update- Next Stop, Public Input
On March 26th there is a Board of Finance public hearing where residents have a chance to share their views on this year’s proposed budget, ahead of the Board of Finance’s final deliberation. We hope all residents will come out to engage in the remainder of the budget process. After weeks of meetings, the budget has been reduced further and has a proposed increase from the current fiscal year by 0.41 mills. You can see the proposed budget here.
After this meeting, the Board of Selectman will send the budget to referendum (tentatively scheduled for April 30th) so all residents have a chance to vote on the upcoming budget. Details on hours and polling locations, along with the entire budget will be posted on the town website.
As the budget currently stands, about 52% of funding goes towards Stonington Public Schools, 11% for Public Works, Engineering and Solid Waste, 9% for Police Services, 2% is Human Services, which includes community nonprofits, 8% is debt services, 6% is Capital Improvements and the remaining 12% is for general town operations.
The budget has an overall increase of 4.57%, with the percentage increase in taxes to be raised at 3.37%. The mill rate was at 17.45 and would be at 17.86 as of this proposed budget. We created a tax calculator on the website so you can also check how this year’s proposed budget may impact you. To give a better sense, if your home’s assessed value is $500,000, then you would see an increase in taxes of $205 for next fiscal year.
A large part of this year’s budget discussion focused on the many infrastructure projects that will be requiring future investment. The first draft of the budget included many of these items, which was why the first draft of the budget had an over 11% potential increase. This was done so there could be a public discussion on how best to plan for the funding of these future needs. This resulted in a discussion around the need to start preparing for a future bonding request that would focus on investments in our aging infrastructure.
The budget process itself continues to showcase the importance of civil discourse and direct communications. For months, the First Selectman, Director of Finance and Department Heads, along with school administration worked to put together the annual budget. Following this, the volunteers on our Board of Finance spent weeks listening and engaging with town, school and nonprofit representatives to assess both current and future needs across a range of areas, including police, human services, education, solid waste, public works and general government. Working in partnership, the Board of Finance then engaged in further dialogue to create a budget that balances immediate and long-term needs.
The budget before you would not be possible without the diligent work of municipal and school staff, and the collaborative work of volunteers on our various Boards and members of our nonprofit community. We are a community that benefits from the diverse range of skills and perspectives these individuals offer. The staff and volunteers who come before the Board of Finance advocate ardently for investments they believe are necessary in our annual budget.
The budget process allows us to take a step back and look at the needs of the entire community and then make choices that balance immediate needs with longer-term planning.
Each year the process shows us that when we work together, we can come out with an end result that benefits the whole community.
Creating a balanced budget takes a great deal of input and effort, and I would like to thank all of those involved in our budget process. It is thanks to the years of collaborative efforts, like we saw again this year, that have made it possible for Stonington to maintain our AAA bond rating, the highest level a municipality can earn, which saves significant tax dollars related to our existing debt services. It has also enabled our community to benefit from having one of the lowest tax rates in Southeastern CT.
The next step in the budget process is so important. We hope residents will choose to engage in the public hearing on March 26th. If you are unable to attend, please know the Board of Finance wants to hear from you, and they have a dedicated email (BoF@stonington-ct.gov) where you can send your specific input ahead of the March 26th meeting.
Thank you, Stonington.
Sincerely,
Danielle Chesebrough, Stonington First Selectman