Newton City Councilors Should Vote NO on the City Budget

From David Spier

The Newton City Council meets tomorrow to vote on our budget for fiscal year 2018.
At Newton Taxpayers' Association, we are opposed to the budget in its present form.
We believe that the budget must ensure spending of no more than tax and other income, and it must not increase Newton’s nearly $1.45 billion in debt and benefits funding shortfall.
The City's pattern of overspending continues in this budget, as constituted. The Federal government pegged 2016 inflation at 0.7%. Yet the budget calls for a 3.6% increase in spending. We see no rationale for increasing spending by more than the rate of inflation.
Newton agreed to a 6% compensation increase for over half of School Department employees. And Newton continues to spend $9.2 million on out-of-district students, most of whom come from cities that are perfectly capable of paying for their own students.
Tax and other income increases by about 4%. At the same time approximately $2 million in extra spending for pensions is included plus $5 million in new debt service spending (for new debt-excluded capital projects) that is accelerating as building construction projects advance. This additional $7 million in spending rests on top of increases in operations spending, and they are planned to accelerate over the coming years.
Newton would be better served by reducing operations spending at the same time that we must progressively increase spending to address capital and debt/benefits funding shortfalls. The decision to address OPEB costs only after 2029 forces Newton’s nearly $1.45 billion in debt and benefits funding shortfall to continue accelerating.
We support a 2018 budget that brings spending in line with inflation and commits all other funds to debt and benefits funding shortfall reduction.