Financial Forum Begins Long Road To Override

The four pages greeting residents at the Financial Forum inside the library contained enough numbers to challenge even the best accountant. The reasons for the numbers became clear seconds after Finance Committee chairman Peter Lydecker stepped to the podium at 7:33 p.m. If you had 7:35 in the pool for the first mention of "override" then you're a winner.

During the next two-plus hours Town Accountant Sharon Angstom and Town Manager Bob LeLacheur explained the numbers, better known as the Reading town budgets for 2017 through 2022. And while the financial picture is better this year than one year ago, it's still not nearly good enough to avoid another override vote. That much residents probably already knew.

The challenge is the same for cities and towns across the state. Proposition 2 1/2, the 1980 law that restricts tax increases to 2 1/2 percent, limits how much additional money the town can raise. But costs, like health care and pensions, rise far more than 2 1/2 percent. That means Reading has two options, cut costs or ask for an override. Last October residents voted down an override. Wednesday night it was clear another is on the way.

Lydecker explained the need for an operational override, meaning additional money needed to pay salaries, health care, pensions, etc. And don't forget both Police Chief Mark Segalla and Fire Chief Greg Burns told the selectmen Tuesday how under staffed they are.

Then it was LeLacheur's turn and the town manager explained the need for a capital override of approximately $6 million dollars. That money would cover $6.3 million for RMHS athletic facilities, $2 million for building security improvements, and $2.3 for Birch Meadow field improvements. That adds up to $10.6 but since $4 million was already in the budget the figure drops to a little over $6 million. The $6.3 million for RMHS came up after the $4 was budgeted and includes replacing the two turf fields along with a new floor in the field house.

And if you believe it's smart to plan ahead then LeLacheur told the audience that the Killam School, the Community Center, and the DPW Garage move to Camp Curtis Guild all needed to be addressed at some point in the future.

So let's review ... an override for the operating budget, an override to fix things, and the desire to keep the overall override request as low as possible or risk the fate of the failed 2016 override. The Board of Selectmen is the only town group that can call for an override and the subject has yet to come up in formal board meetings. That will change soon.

Coming up with a number won't be easy. The Finance Committee will have to settle on a town budget before they learn what the health insurance increases will be. State aid is up the air and as LeLacheur said, "any given year there's a chunk of one-time things."

The school budget won't be presented to the School Committee until early January. That group will finalize their budget on Jan. 18. It's LeLacheur's job to present a balanced budget to the selectmen and then it's up to the five-man board to come up with a override number and sell it to the residents.

The last override failed and LeLacheur has said repeatedly the town did a bad job communicating with its residents. So pay attention Reading. The communication started Wednesday night.

Photo of Finance Committee chair Peter Lydecker alongside Reading Town Manager Bob LeLacheur and Town Accountant Sharon Angstom by Bob Holmes