Finance Committee sets budget targets
The Finance Committee, a committee of the whole Town Council, has set a budget
target of a 4.3 percent increase in spending for the next fiscal year, and
a tax rate increase of less than 10 percent.
Town Councilor Jim Rowe, chairman of the Finance Committee, announced the
consensus of the committee at the March 3 meeting of the Town Council. The
4.3 percent spending increase represents the increase in the
consumer price index since January
2007.
The Finance Committee met in a workshop just before the council meeting to
discuss possible budget targets.
Rowe said the committee agreed to set targets for both spending and tax increases
for next year, considering the "trying economic times and the situation we
all are facing with our economy."
Economy shades municipal budget proposal
The state of the economy was the preface to the Town Manager Michael McGovern's
draft budget for Town expenditures, submitted to the council this week. He
began his annual budget message with headlines of the day from
MSNBC.com and The Wall Street Journal, all pointing to nationwide
recession.
"Cape Elizabeth is not immune from the larger economic challenges we see
in the United States," McGovern's message says, citing declines in Cape Elizabeth
excise tax revenue, housing construction, real-estate values and investment
income.
McGovern's proposed $8.9 million budget for municipal expenditures - excluding
school, county and Community Services - is up $415,697 over this year's,
or 4.88 percent.
"But due to flat revenues, the entire burden of the proposed increase is
proposed to be funded by property taxes," his message says. "This translates
to a tax increase of 30 cents per thousand, 1.8% on the overall tax increase
and 8.2% on the municipal portion of the tax burden," he said.
Payroll accounts for 51 percent of the increase, he said. Increased costs
for debt service, fuel, contracted services such as animal control and
snowplowing, and road maintenance material such as salt and sand account
for the rest of the increase.
"The proposed adjustment provides for no new positions and no new programs,"
McGovern said. "It reduces spending for Family Fun Day, for capital outlay
and for demolition debris disposal," he said.
"I share discomfort with the proposed tax increase and look forward to
prioritizing needs with the Finance Committee," McGovern's message says.
The council referred the municipal budget proposal and special funds budgets
to the Finance Committee, for consideration in a series of workshops beginning
March 25. For a complete schedule of budget workshops, please see the
special budget section of this Web site.
School Board to consider its budget March 11
During the past week the School Board has met in workshop sessions to finalize
its proposal for school expenditures for the next fiscal year. Although the
needs-based budget presented by Superintendent Alan Hawkins included a spending
increase of more than 13 percent, the board directed Hawkins to pare that
increase to 6 percent for presentation at the March meeting.
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