Selectmen approve budget

WINSTED — During a special budget meeting at Town Hall on Monday, April 9, the Board of Selectmen approved a proposed budget of $32,388,777 for fiscal year 2012-13 and set this year’s annual town budget meeting for Monday, May 7.The approved budget represents a 2.14 increase in the mill rate from 25.43 mills to 27.57 mills.The vote to approve the budget was on party lines, with Democrats Mayor Maryann Welcome and Selectmen Michael Renzullo, Candy Perez, George Closson and James DiVita voting to approve the budget.Republican Selectmen Ken Fracasso and Glenn Albanesius voted against the budget.The proposed budget is a $1,656,254 increase over last year’s approved town budget of $30,732,523. Cuts at April 5 meeting During their second special budget meeting on Thursday, April 5, the selectmen cut approximately $700,000 from the budget mainly by reducing the proposed public works and fire department budgets.At that meeting, Perez made the motions for the cuts to the respective department budgets.A total of $328,000 was cut from the public works department budget, which were all funds to allow for the department to purchase new vehicles, including two snow plow trucks, a roadside mower and a bituminous roller trailer.In making the cuts, Perez said the department would have to purchase used vehicles from auctions or lease vehicles with their remaining budget funds.Approximately $89,000 was cut from the fire department’s proposed budget, including expenditures in furnace replacement, kitchen upgrades, vehicle replacement, roof replacement and rescue tool replacement.A deputy police chief was elminated from the police department’s proposed budget, cutting $113,195. Also cut from the department was an additional $29,000, including line items for holiday pay, painting crosswalks and training and education for officers.The selectmen made an addition of approximately $32,295 to the community, planning and development department in order to hire a full-time town planner. Changes at April 9 meeting At the April 9 meeting, the selectmen voted to add $97,880 to the Board of Education’s proposed budget, bringing it to $20,056,029.The new budget number is $561,711 less than what Superintendent Thomas Danehy’s requested in his budget.The budget addition was moved by Perez and approved on party lines 5-2, with Fracasso and Albanesius voting against the motion.“Everybody can take different sides of the issue, but the schools made an effort to find retirement savings and savings in their special education programs,” Perez said. “The availability of a tuition stabilization fund, as well as the state’s increase of Education Cost Sharing money, should provide the school district with an extra $120,000 to $200,000. However, there are still needs in terms of students and what they need.”Fracasso disagreed and criticized the handling of funds by the school district.“I think all of us here know that any increase to the Board of Education, whether it’s for teachers or for whatever, that’s not in our control,” Fracasso said. “The Board of Education has the authority to spend their money as they see fit. The fact that they left unfunded increases for salaries and health benefits, any money that we put forth is first and foremost going to go to those salaries. We are going to kiss this $100,000 goodbye.” Selectmen’s criticisms Closson was not present at the meeting on April 5. However, he was present at the April 9 meeting and spoke out against the town’s Republican party.“During Selectmen Fracasso’s term as mayor, I think there was an emphasis on maintaining a steady mill rate,” Closson said. “In order to do that, money was taken out of the fund balance to accomplish it. It kind of factored into popularity rather than what we needed to accomplish, which is why we are sitting here now. I remember in the fall, postcards were sent out indicating that if democrats were elected, there would be a supplemental tax. Of course that did not happen, but the other night, Ken said that’s the way we should do it. In the next breath it’s ‘we shouldn’t be raising any taxes.’ I’m not quite sure how that comes together.”Closson then further criticized Republicans, as well as Democratic Board of Education member James Roberts, for the budget situation the town faced last year.“The Minimum Budget Requirement (MBR) for last year was underfunded by $1.3 million and did not comply with state law,” Closson said. “It put us in a situation where a lawsuit was brought against us by the Board of Education. As for the fund balance, last year we had an opportunity to receive a grant from the Winchester Land Trust of approximately $450,000. It would have been awarded subject to town approval but it was voted down. We had an opportunity to put money into the fund balance, which we desperately need right now.”Closson said it is time for the selectmen to turn the corner on the negative situations in the past and work past them.“We should do this in order to attract people to the town and increase the town’s value revenue,” Closson said.Fracasso did not respond directly to Closson’s comments, but before the proposed budget passed, he took some time to criticize it.“I know that we need to improve the infrastructure in Winsted, however I am disappointed that the proposed budget doesn’t do any of that,” Fracasso said. “All it does is increase salaries and benefits for existing town employees. We’ve increased staff by adding a town planner that I don’t think we need. We have more public works management and more civil service expenses. I don’t think it’s feasible to lease vehicles, with the interest over five years that could be enough to buy another truck and a half. I am especially disappointed that the board did not follow the town manager’s direction which would not increase the Board of Education’s budget over the set MBR. This is just more of the same spending and no investments into the future of the town. Until we increase the tax base and stop putting this on to the taxpayer’s shoulders, year after year, it will not do anything for the town.”Perez strongly disagreed with Fracasso and spoke favorably for the proposed budget.“I have had personal meetings with residents who represent different parts of town,” Perez said. “I have asked them if they could support what they thought was necessary in the budget. Some people told me ‘whatever it takes’, others have told me ‘it’s kind of high, bring it down some’ and others have told me that we are crazy. I’m with the thinking that the town needs to take a small step forward. Forward includes a small step for students, because they do not get to have a do over when they miss critical math and reading when they are young. It also means protecting firefighters with an additional $116,000 worth of safety gear and funding for a fire truck, software for the police department to purchase software. The town meeting and the town referendum may bring a different outcome than the one we are putting forward, but we will always run into a continuing spiral of property values if we do not spend money and invest in our infrastructure to begin to stabilize our town.”The next step for the proposed town budget is the annual town meeting scheduled for Monday, May 7, at 7 p.m. at The Gilbert School. As per the town’s charter, residents may propose cuts to the budget, but they can not propose additions to it.