Charlie Breitrose
Town Manager Michael Driscoll announced his Fiscal Year 2018 town budget on Tuesday.
Next year’s town budget calls for a healthy increase for town departments and even larger for the schools, Town Manager Michael Driscoll said Tuesday night, but there will be some work to do to make up a shortfall of nearly $2 million before the budget is adopted in the spring.
Watertown’s total operating budget for Fiscal Year 2018 (July 1, 2017-June 30, 2018) presented to the Town Council was $133.3 million, but the forecast revenue is $131.5 million, Driscoll said. See the budget documents here.
The budget calls for a 2.5 percent increase for municipal departments, including Police and Fire, Driscoll said. The Watertown Public Schools would receive a 5 percent increase.
The shortfall in the budget is $1.83 million, which is smaller than the deficit at the same time last year when the town faced a gap of $2.23 million. The FY 2018 budget is 4.9 percent higher than the budget for FY 2017 – the current year.
Driscoll said he used conservative budget forecasts to come up with the revenue and expenditure forecast.
“We could project State Aid would go up $3.3 million. That would be nice, but it would not be prudent,” Driscoll said. “In the spring we will submit a level budget. Either revenue will go up, expenditures will go down or a combination of both.”
About three-quarters of the budget comes from the town’s real estate and personal property taxes. This is expected to grow $3.3 million for FY 2018, Driscoll said. When the 2.5 percent increase allowed under Proposition 2-1/2 is added in, the total amount is $100.4 million.
The next biggest revenue source is State Aid, which is projected to be the same as last year, at $12.1 million. Last year the State Aid came in $28,000 more than originally budgeted.
Other excise taxes (non-motor vehicles) are forecast to go up from $875,000 in FY 2017 to $935,000 in FY 2018 due to the new hotel. That figure also includes boats and meals taxes.
Spending on departments will rise $3.1 million to $83.9 million, including $45.7 million for education. Pension costs will rise $1.6 million to $16.9 million and insurance costs will jump $900,000 to $16 million. Debt and interest costs will increase $1.5 million to $9.6 million.
The next step in the budget process is for the Town Council to adopt policy guidelines. The Council’s Budget and Fiscal Oversight Committee will meet three times – Oct. 31, Nov. 7 and Nov. 14 – to discuss the guidelines. Councilors have until Oct. 25 to submit suggestions, said Council Vice President Vincent Piccirilli.
The FY 2018 budget will be adopted in the spring of 2017.
What about all the new revenue from the hundreds of housing units, new commercial spaces, and new hotel?
The hotel is in the other excise taxes and the new units are part of the property tax growth. Since the big ones on Arsenal Street are not done I am not sure of they are counted yet.