Date: Fri 26-Apr-1996

Publication: Bee

Author: KAAREN

Quick Words:

budget-council-cuts

Full Text:

Council Makes Cuts After Budget Defeat

B Y K AAREN V ALENTA

Responding to the 85-vote defeat of the proposed $50.3 million town/school

budget in Tuesday's referendum, the Legislative Council met Wednesday night

and decided to reduce the budget by $700,000.

To the dismay of First Selectman Bob Cascella and Board of Education Chairman

Herb Rosenthal, the council voted to cut $350,000 from the town's road

reconstruction budget and $350,000 from the debt service for the proposed

school projects.

After more than two hours of often emotional debate, the final vote on the

proposed $49,638,305 budget was 7-4. The $700,000 cut would reduce the

proposed tax rate by about one-half mill to 25 mills. Property owners can

predict what their 1996-97 tax bill will be by multiplying their new property

assessment by .025.

From the day that the new budget proposal is submitted to the town clerk,

probably this week, a town meeting must be held within the next 10 days to two

weeks to vote on the new budget. Voters at the meeting have the power to

decrease or delete any item from the budget but not to add to the total budget

nor to any specific budget area. If the budget is defeated, it goes back to

the council for reconsideration.

If the budget is approved at the town meeting, the action is final and not

subject to a referendum. To force a machine vote, petitions bearing the

signatures of 578 voters would have to be submitted to the town clerk within

seven days of the date that the clerk receives the budget.

Mr Cascella raised emotional objections to the cut in road reconstruction

funds, suggesting sarcastically that the council should put money back into

the school budget to pay for the repairs that will be needed for school buses

driving on the town's roads.

"Eighty percent of the complaint calls to my office are road-related," Mr

Cascella said. "The citizens don't want to hear `no roads'. The $2 million we

requested barely makes it. Cutting this $350,000 will mean there will be roads

that won't be done."

Herb Rosenthal vowed after the meeting to continue with the proposed projects

at the high school, Hawley School and Head O'Meadow despite the council's cut

in financing for the estimated $32 million package. The $350,000 cut in the

debt service amounts to a $3.5 million cut in the bonding for the projects,

which has not yet gone out for bid nor has been voted upon by the town.

The special meeting began with a public portion in which several members of

the audience spoke - about a dozen members of the public plus a few town and

school officials. Economic Development Commission Chairman Lyndon Thomas,

Chamber of Commerce President K. Michael Snyder and Local Housing Partnership

Vice Chairman Joseph Humeston urged the council not to cut the $55,000

position of community development director, a suggestion which had been voiced

by some council members after the budget was defeated 1,080-1,165 in Tuesday's

referendum.

Mr Snyder, a former selectman, suggested that the town and school budgets

budget be reduced by a small percentage, allowing the first selectman, with

his department managers, and the Board of Education to decide where to make

the cuts. Most of the council members agreed with Mr Snyder's proposal, saying

that Tuesday's referendum was not a mandate for large cuts in the budget.

"Don't misread the vote," council member Pierre Rochman warned. "Because this

is a reval year and the mill rate is going down, it is difficult for people to

judge the impact on them. It's a complex year to know what the impact will

be."

Council Vice Chairman Melissa Pilchard demanded to know "where are all the

school supporters? You want us to spend $30 million yet you don't care or

don't think it's important to vote on the budget."

But Councilman Joseph McGowan, chairman of the finance committee, said the

system works. "The townspeople went to a legal referendum and told us to cut

the budget," he said. "With the level of discontent that I see, I think a cut

of one mill, about $1.49 million, is in order."

Council Chairman Joseph Mahoney said it is the council's job to make specific

cuts in the selectmen's budget, not to cut a percentage from the total

package.

"I won't support cuts in personnel or services," Mr Mahoney said. "I propose

that $350,000 be cut from roads and $350,000 from debt service. This could be

accomplished by restructuring the debt service and pushing some (school)

projects back."

The council voted 10-1 to cut $350,000 from the capital road budget, with

Councilman Jack Rosenthal casting the negative vote.

Mr Rochman, who had earlier proposed cutting one percent, or $500,000, from

the total budget, made a motion to reduce the school board's operating budget

by $360,000. Mr Rosenthal objected, pointing out that the council already had

cut $250,000 from what the board originally requested.

"This is a horrendous cut. You are going to hurt the school budget

tremendously," Mr Rosenthal said. "Talk about being mean-spirited."

Mrs Pilchard, Lisa Schwartz and Joseph Borst agreed, saying the proposed cut

would be too much. But when the council nearly voted to cut off debate and

limit the cut to just the selectmen's budget, Mr Rochman objected strenuously,

saying he deferred making motions earlier on the presumption that he would be

heard later "and now you are trying to shut me up."

Mr McGowan agreed and accused Mr Mahoney of making "a deal" prior to the

meeting in which $350,000 cuts would be made from both budgets.

"The deal emanated from you, Mr Chairman," Mr McGowan said. "Why are you

changing it now?"

Mr Mahoney insisted it wasn't a deal, it was "my personal suggestion about how

this could be resolved."

"Call it what you will," Mr McGowan responded. "You have compromised

yourself."

Mr Rochman then made a motion to reduce the debt service by $350,000. Mr

Rosenthal objected, saying the delay of school projects could wind up costing

the town significantly more in the long run if the projects have to be rebid

later.

Mrs Pilchard tried unsuccessfully reduce the cut to $100,000. She said part of

the school projects could be removed or postponed or the borrowing schedule

could be changed to reduce the impact on next year's budget. A vote to remove

the $350,000 from debt service then was approved 7-4. Mrs Schwartz, Mr

Rosenthal and Mrs Pilchard cast no votes, saying the cut was too deep; Mr

McGowan wanted deeper cuts from the total budget.

Mrs Schwartz then asked the council to reconsider the selectmen's budget and

add $250,000 back to the capital road account. This motion failed on a 6-5

vote.

"We've got to cut something," Mr Rochman said. "No matter what we wind up

cutting, we will get a lot of complaints."

After the meeting, many council members stood talking in small groups,

expressing their dissatisfication with course of the evening's events.

"No one is happy, so I guess it must be a good budget," Mr Mahoney said.