 Revenue task force looks
at 2009 -- and beyond
The following are notes written by Peter Sz, who attended the meeting of the town’s Budget & Revenue Task Force on Monday, Jan. 28. The meeting of various town and school officials involved in budget matters began at 6 p.m. and was chaired by Annie LaCourt, chair of the Board of Selectmen. Town Manager Brian Sullivan provided an overview of two topics – town finances and the governor’s proposed budget for the next fiscal year.
Local-aid figures | Budget numbers for fiscal years 2008-2013
Cable replay schedule
For government channel (Comcast 10, RCN 15, and Verizon 26)
Budget Revenue Task Force MEETING OF 01/28/08 air times:
Thursdays: 6 AM & 6 PM
Saturday and Tuesday: 10:30 AM & 10:30 PM
This meeting will also air at the conclusion of selectmen Meeting eplays Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday @ 9:35 AM & PM
The town budget overview incorporating the latest information from Gov. Patrick’s budget proposal for fiscal 2009 shows that Arlington’s tax levy will increase $2 million, up 2.5 percent.
The picture shows some new growth, and the exempt debt is expected to be down a bit. Local receipts are expected to be $9.5 million, which is up $729,000, or 8 percent, because of building permits for the project at the former Symmes Hospital site, a one-year situation.
State aid will see a $489,000 increase, up 3 percent, for a total of $16.5 million. Total free cash is projected to be at $1.8 million, which is up $864,000.
Total town expenditures are expected to be $111.7 million. Total revenues are to increase $4 million, a 3.8-percent increase.
Under key expenditures, group health insurance costs are projected to be up 12 percent. As per the five-year fiscal-stability plan, begun in 2005, operating costs can only rise 2.8 percent.
Pension and healthcare costs together are to increase $2 million, or 9 percent overall. Healthcare costs rose 7 percent last year, described as a “brief respite.”
The new state healthcare plan, known as the GIC [http://www.mass.gov/gic/], for Group Insurance Commission, has the potential for significant savings, Sullivan said.
Capital and warrant expenditures are seen remaining flat. Nonappropriated expenses – for the MBTA and overlay – are to decrease $165,000.
The education budget is expected to rise 3 percent, and town department budgets are to increase 2.7 percent. Overall, Arlington’s expenditures are expected to increase 3.8 percent.
A $123,000 decrease is expected in the Minuteman budget, because of declines in enrollment at the tech school in Lexington.
State-aid figures include casino revenues, as per Gov. Patrick’s budget proposal, even though casino plans for Massachusetts are in their early stages.
Sullivan provided a recap of information about the Override Stabilization Fund. In fiscal 2006 and 2007, $2.1 million went into the fund. In the following fiscal years, the amounts noted are expected to go into the fund – in 2008, $100,000, and in 2009, $583,000.
In fiscal 2010, $2 million is expected to come out of the fund, followed by $3 million in 2011.
Sullivan said this means that fiscal 2011, the first year after the five-year plan, will see a projected town budget deficit of $500,000.
As for the Symmes project, Sullivan said there have been no significant revenues yet, construction will occur over the next two years. Perhaps $600,000 to $800,000 per year is expected to flow to Arlington when the buildings are constructed. Double that amount is expected when the rental units are converted to condos.
These are gross numbers, and the Symmes project debt remains to be repaid.
Selectwoman Clarissa Rowe reported that the casinos will not be built for about five years. She said she has friends who are beginning to work on the environmental impact statements for the casinos.
As to Chapter 70 school aid to cities and towns, Sullivan said that communities receive 50 percent on average, and some communities get 85 percent. Arlington gets 16.4 percent of its school budget funded by the state.
Sullivan said that the state policies and aid formulas are dictating that communities with little industry or growth in their tax base whose residents have relatively high personal incomes, must not look to the state for help.
Basically, they are saying if the residents of the community are relatively well off, then the community has the ability to raise its own revenues to support services. The problem is, he said, the town can’t raise revenues through income taxes -- our only revenue source is the property tax.
Another problem, he said, is that not all residents are well off and to have to over rely on the regressive property tax to finance local services is going to drive lower income homeowners out of town. This is counterproductive to our efforts to promote affordable housing and a diverse community.
LaCourt said that Waltham schools get 90 percent reconstruction aid, Waltham has no budget cuts, and they have had no overrides. She said they have plenty of funds from industries, hotels and new growth in their tax base, and the city gets they get more state aid than Arlington.
Rep. Jay Kaufman presented numbers showing that Arlington's state aid is lower than it was in 1990. Lack of growth is the problem. He said.
No one has commented on this article. |
"Race: The Power of an Illusion," a film and dialogue series, is set to begin Tuesday, Oct. 21, at 7 p.m. in the Robbins Li...
