Ambulance Fund Deficit Looms As Somers Approves Budget

SOMERS, CT — The Somers Board of Selectmen voted Tuesday night to advance a proposed $9,633,708 town budget for fiscal year 2026–27, a 3.7 percent increase over the current year, as officials grapple with rising emergency service costs, flat revenues and no remaining fund balance cushion.

The special meeting, held Feb. 24 at Town Hall, was posted for “Budget Discussion and possible action.”

Board Finalizes 3.7 Percent Town Increase

After a series of real-time adjustments, including reductions to road maintenance, separation payouts and the state police line item, the board settled on a $343,910 net increase to the town side of the budget — a 3.7 percent hike.

Combined with the Board of Education’s proposed 3.68 percent increase, the overall package would require an estimated 2.36 mill rate increase, translating to roughly $800 to $900 annually for the average homeowner, officials said.

Officials stressed the town budget contains no cuts to services.

Ambulance Fund Shortfall Raises Red Flags

A major concern during the discussion was the town’s ambulance fund, which is projected to run a deficit of roughly $276,000.

Selectmen said revenue from ambulance billing — estimated at about $850,000 — will not cover projected expenses exceeding $1.1 million. Officials discussed shifting certain personnel costs from the ambulance fund to the general fund and exploring additional revenue from neighboring towns that rely heavily on Somers for EMS coverage.

Fire Department Call Volume And Mutual Aid Highlighted

The fire department reported 2,453 total calls in 2025, including 1,913 medical calls. Mutual aid responses totaled 745, with 461 calls to Stafford and 176 to Ellington, according to the presentation.

Town leaders signaled they intend to revisit service agreements with those communities to address cost recovery.

Fire Department Staffing And Fleet Under Review

Fire Chief Tim Stovall outlined plans to hire an additional full-time firefighter/paramedic under an existing contract provision and to move a captain to a daytime leadership schedule to improve oversight and reduce overtime.

Officials cautioned that the ambulance fund deficit may require further adjustments before final adoption of the overall spending plan.

Fleet replacement planning is also expected to be a major topic in coming years, with several apparatus projected to need replacement within the next decade.

Library And Recreation Funding Maintained

The board backed a modest increase for library programming, citing expanded children’s and adult offerings and continued support from Friends of the Library and the library endowment.

As part of the budget package, officials also discussed shifting a portion of recreation-related salary costs into the recreation fund to ease pressure on the general fund.

What Comes Next

The proposal now heads to the Board of Finance for review. Selectmen acknowledged limited flexibility, noting prior reliance on fund balance to soften tax increases has left the town with little room to repeat that approach.

The board voted unanimously to approve the $9,633,708 budget for submission and adjourned the meeting.