Spending cuts alter insurance policies, spark discussion in Sharon

SHARON — Health insurance rates, student education costs and a dwindling student body at Sharon Central School dominated the conversation at the town budget public hearing, held the evening of April 25, which saw a packed house and spirited testimony from residents and town officials.

During the hearing, First Selectmen Casey Flanagan and Board of Education Chair Douglas Cahill presented numbers that had not yet factored in a last-minute reduction due to a health insurance change, explained First Selectman Casey Flanagan while going through the municipal operating budget.

The insurance stir-up ensued after the Board of Education took action to respond to an April 15 request by the Board of Finance to reduce its budget proposal by $68,979 so that it remains flat from last year. To accomplish this, the Board of Education decided to remove non-certified Sharon Central School employees from a health insurance plan it shared with Sharon Town Hall employees, some Hotchkiss Library employees and even several members of Kent’s and Salisbury’s town staff, moving them to a state-operated plan called the State Partnership Plan.

The shared plan, established years ago between the organizations, requires 50 members to be valid, and the removal of the school employees brought enrollment below that number.

The Selectmen and other participating organizations were then left to find alternative insurance options, which Flanagan said he managed to do before the public hearing, landing on the same plan as the Board of Education. He was confident that the new plan — administered by insurance provider Anthem as the previous one was — would offer town employees comparable coverage to the previous plan.

“It sounds really robust and I think it’s going to be a smooth transition,” Flanagan said, adding that it will enable the town to offer visual and dental insurance to its employees due to the savings that will result from the switch.

Flanagan said the new costs — marked under Line 17b as “Hospitalization/Life” in the budget —will be $373,752 after the switch, a reduction of almost $65,000 dollars from the previously proposed number and $36,248 lower than last year’s costs. With the adjustment, the total Board of Selectmen operating plan stands at $5,297,315, which is a $99,917 or 1.92% increase from last year.

Jill Drew, who serves on several town commissions, was the first member of the public to speak up regarding the change, noting the risks of “changing everyone’s health care plan in a week, even if it looks good at first blush.” She suggested that the conversation be taken out of a budget context, where more time and care may be given to what she said is an important and sensitive topic.

Stanley MacMillan Jr., who serves as the town’s Fire Marshall and Building Official and is also the Planning and Zoning Commission’s secretary, said that he agrees that the decision feels rushed and that the public has not been given adequate information.

Flanagan responded that deadlines have necessitated the hurried nature of the decision, but reiterated that he is confident that the new plan will provide great coverage.

Nancy Martin spoke up, saying that she has spent 15 years on the plan as a Region One employee with good results: “It’s not a new plan,” she said, but “something the region has a lot of experience with.”

Cahill upheld that switching Sharon Central School’s uncertified employees to the state healthcare plan and increasing employee contribution to the plan has reduced the school budget by approximately $48,000, enabling the board to uphold the Board of Finance’s request without sacrificing the quality of the school’s education. Cahill described the proposal as a fair and “no fluff” spending plan: “This is what we believe we need to run this school.”

The Sharon Board of Education has jurisdiction over the Sharon Central School spending, he explained. Since the Region One spending assessment this year for Sharon increased by $166,797 or 9.49% from last year, the local numbers had to account for that hike as well. The overall Central School budget, with the $68,979 cut to bring the cumulative education costs down to a 0% change, now totals $4,165,511, down $162,878 or 3.76% from last year.

Cahill explained that an additional $12,000 was cut from six other line items to make up the remainder of the requested reduction, shortening funds from painting programs and teacher travel expenses among other areas. “We’ve cut it to the absolute core,” he said, but promised that education and teaching would not be sacrificed as the Board seeks to lower per-student costs.

Cutting the Spanish program, for example, was another proposed option, but Cahill maintained that ensuring Sharon’s elementary and middle school students have the same access to language teaching as their future Region One high school classmates from other towns is paramount: “Our board is keenly committed to foreign language,” he said.

Cahill explained that regional issues, such as a lack of affordable housing and difficult transportation, contribute to high education expenses in Sharon and low enrollments. While student numbers remain low at 98 — with 93 estimated for next school year — Cahill assured that “the school is ready” for more students, which would cost the town little and bring per-student expenses down.

The referendum for Region One’s 2025-26 spending proposal will be May 6. A town meeting for residents to vote on Sharon’s municipal and education budgets is scheduled for May 9 at 6 p.m.