Refunding Will Offset $710K Debt On HS Borrowing
Refunding Will Offset $710K Debt On HS Borrowing
By John Voket
Newtown taxpayers who voted Yes on this weekâs budget because they thought it was the best they could do, and those who voted No because they thought the town could do more to save money both received a postreferendum surprise Wednesday.
Town Finance Director Robert Tait completed the process of refunding a number of municipal bonds, achieving a savings of $710,000.
âRefunding is all set,â Mr Tait said in a late afternoon email to The Bee. âThe savings, for the most part, occur in 2010-11 and 2011-2012.â
The finance director said the savings will help offset the increase in debt service due to the first phase of high school construction borrowing.
âThe $105,000 savings in 2009-2010 will enable us to use only $250,000 of debt service funds, instead of the $350,000 we originally planned to use,â Mr Tait said.
The savings equals the sum of individual refunding on 14 different bond issues that were due between June 30 of this year, and June of 2022. Savings ranged from a low of $231.26 on $1.4 million in bonding due June 30, 2013, to $288,968.76, on a $1.05 million issue coming due June 30, 2011.
During recent budget negotiations, Mr Tait hinted that he might save at least $400,000 in the refunding, so the almost doubling in savings was welcome news on the heels of a referendum that ushered in one of the tightest budgets in recent town history.