LITCHFIELD — More than 80 residents showed up Saturday morning to take part in the town’s annual meeting to finalize the 2012-13 operating budget.
Town Manager Mike Byron said voters passed all 59 articles of the proposed $1,678,759 budget — including two specific articles aimed at improving the small town’s dated firetrucks and plow truck fleet.
Byron said in an effort to make the meeting more efficient, this year’s moderator, attorney Cliff Goodall, proposed approving articles in batches. In essence, non-confrontational budget articles generating no debate or discussion were grouped together and approved as one article.
He said the change enabled the meeting to run smoother and allowed ample time for discussion of important issues such as the Fire and Public Works departments, both of which saw significant budget increases.
The newly approved budget is $78,000, or 4.6 percent, higher than the current year, but residents will not see any increase in town’s taxe rate of $11.95 per $1,000.
Byron said the flat rate is because officials will draw $100,000 from the town’s $1.2 million fund balance — also known as a rainy day fund — to cover the $78,000 increase while keeping the tax rate at $11.95. The remaining $22,000 will go towards offsetting a projected reduction in state funding.
“For a town of our size, there’s an old rule of thumb that you should have at least 60 days worth of operating expenses set aside in the fund balance,” Byron said. “For Litchfield, that would be about $850,000.
Last year, the 2011-12 proposed budget included a $75,000 increase, and town officials dedicated $100,000 from the fund balance toward that budget — same as this year. In addition to covering the $75,000 gap, the extra funding also helped reduce taxpayers rate by 20 cents per $1,000, lowering the rate from $12.15 to $11.95.
But the RSU 4 school budget passed last Tuesday will raise Litchfield’s tax rate by 70 cents per $1,000 — taking it from $11.95 to $12.65.
Two articles leading to discussion among residents were spending $405,000 for firetrucks and $195,000 for a new plow truck for the town’s aging fleets.
With regard to the Fire Department budget, Bryon said $105,000 will come from the town’s capital equipment reserve account, with the balance coming from a $300,000 bond spread over 10 years.
With the funds, a 5,000-gallon tanker will be replaced with a new tanker that has either a 2,000- or 3,000-gallon capacity. A second, existing tanker would be outfitted with a new compressed air foam unit to make up some of the difference in capacity.
Another firetruck will be refurbished and two service trucks originally given to the town for free will be retired with the purchase of the new truck.
The other aging vehicle fleet for the town belongs to its Public Works Department, Byron said. On Saturday, voters approved spending $195,000 for a new plow truck.
Presently, the town has four plows and four drivers, according to Byron, but no back up because a fifth truck owned by the town does not pass inspection. The money will be used to purchase a new “wheeler,” a large plow capable of carrying 12 yards of sand and salt versus the current six yards.
The new plow will be paid for by rolling $95,480 originally set aside for a road project into the Public Works’ Capital Reserve account, which already has a balance of $119,500. In the end, according to Byron, the new truck will be able to cover more territory with less return trips to fill up on sand. It will also enable the department to retire one truck from its fleet that will serve as a back-up plow for the town.
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