Approved New Canaan Budget Will Increase Taxes by Less Than 3 Percent

The New Canaan Town Council earlier this month approved a $144.12 million budget for fiscal 2015-16, which increases spending by 2 percent, and raises taxes on residents by 2.85 percent next year.

The big debate centered on the Board of Education’s budget as the Town Council voted 7-4 to reduce the school budget by $100,000, reports Mike Dinan of the New Canaanite.

Some members including John Engel wanted to keep the entire school budget proposal intact, and questioned how and why a $100,000 reduction was arrived at, reports the New Canaanite.

But the majority of the council including Roger Williams approved the $100,000 reduction. Williams indicated the reduction would not affect school programs, Dinan reports.

The approved Board of Education budget is for $83.2 million, which is a $2.32 million or 2.8 percent increase over the current spending plan. School officials will have to decide how to to reduce the budget by $100,000. No specifics have been released as of late Wednesday.

Other budget reductions include a $20,000 reduction to the police overtime budget and a $25,000 reduction to the Public Work’s salaries account, reports Greg Reilly, of the New Canaan Advertiser.

Council Chairman Bill Walbert at prior public meetings had indicated a desire to keep the tax rate below 3 percent, which resulted in reductions to several accounts including the education budget, the Advertiser reports.

Tax Collection rate

Historically, New Canaan’s tax collection rate is 99.5 percent but the town is just budgeting a 98 percent collection rate in next year’s budget.

The difference means more than $1 million in tax revenue that wouldn’t have to be raised by taxation, and could have led to a reduced tax rate next year, the Advertiser reports.

But council members decided to leave the tax collection rate at 98 percent instead of raising it 99.5 percent, which the town’s audit committee had recommended, according to the Advertiser.

Read the New Canaan Advertiser’s full budget story here.

Read the New Canaanite’s full budget story here.