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Health & Fitness

Working Together on a Responsible Budget

Analysis of Stratford Town Budget Alternative

First, I want to thank Christopher Carroll and the readers of Patch for reading my posts.  I am hoping it will help encourage the exchange of ideas and better craft public policy in local government.  I welcome any feedback you can provide.  This is about the readers and not about me the author.

April showers bring May flowers, and in Stratford and many towns in the state, it also brings up budget discussions as local legislatures deliberate on the upcoming budget.  Sometimes it seems like it is always a contentious vote, and in many ways it is.  It does affect town services and the tax rate that had a daily impact on people’s lives.  With that in mind, it is imperative that elected officials keep in mind such ramifications.  If you outright defund government, it defeats the purpose of having a town and the core services of public safety, education, economic development, recreation and other quality of life issues.  Conversely, people’s finances are not a blank check for a la carte spending.  It is however, an opportunity to steer municipal government in a fair and responsible direction.

We are experiencing unprecedented economic hardships that have not been seen since the 1920s.  We are, for better or worse, living in historic times.  Government must reflect this tremendous responsibility, and federal, state and local budgets set the tone of that responsibility.  First, I want to thank Mayor John Harkins for proposing a 1.08% increase to the Board of Education that will keep our schools open and continue to provide all Stratford students with a quality education that they and their families have a right to possess.  However, I believe that through amending the Mayor’s proposal, we can reduce the tax increase while maintaining key services that residents treasure or outright need.

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As a member of the Democratic caucus on the Stratford Town Council, I feel that we have offered an amended budget that addresses these concerns.  A 1.66 increase in the mill rate, which equates to about $308 per household following a large increase last year is a large burden to ask taxpayers to shoulder.  The alternative allows for the mill rate to be reduced to a 0.98 mill increase, or around $181 per household, saving the taxpayers $127.  With many families on fixed income, this is significant money.  The alternative budget also provided restorations of key services that many constituents have contacted us about, including restored funds to the library, allocations back to Parent’s Place that benefits many young parents in mentoring programs, and restoring the Animal Control Officer to our new state of the art animal shelter. 

More importantly, it prevents layoffs in other key departments including tree repair crews in Public Works, and positions in the Tax Assessor and Tax Collectors offices.  To reduce personnel in these departments would have profound and negative effects on these services.  We also feel that it is inappropriate at this time to give pay increases in Human Resources and other departments when union concessions and layoffs are proposed.  Everyone is asked to sacrifice in order to keep government functioning while not overburdening the taxpayer.

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The proposed cuts targets areas in town hall that have skyrocketing budgets that place an unfair pressure on taxpayers and businesses in our community.  This can be extended to a long term effort to reform government that is more efficient, affordable and responsive to the public’s needs.  This larger effort can make Stratford a more vibrant community for years to come.

This is a proposal that invites our friends and colleagues in the Republican caucus and in the Mayor’s office to work with us and present their ideas to make this proposal even better.  There is an opportunity to reach across the aisle and establish a budget that benefits all of Stratford residents.  It is also an invitation for residents to reach out to us on the Council and make suggestions to better serve the community.  We welcome your ideas and advice.

-- Dave Fuller, D-6

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