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SPENCER – Residents at a March 17 meeting regarding a proposed Proposition 2 ½ override called a presentation on the topic “convoluted,” “a train wreck,” and “confusing,” and criticized Selectmen and Town Administrator Jeff Bridges for not having printed handouts available.
The too small visuals on the screen were among other complaints.
The officials said they would have printed handouts available for the other override sessions on March 19, March 25 and April 2. Copies would also be at Town Hall and online, they said.
Officials said they would take the feedback into consideration when deciding about placing a question or questions on the May election ballot.
The Proposition 2 ½ override, if a single question, would total $2,465,390.
If the question is broken down over three years, the amounts would be $796,000 in 2026; $840,575 in 2027; and $825,815 in 2028.
For an average property valued at $393,739, the tax impact would be $251.28 in year one; $283.68 in year two; and $287.73 in year three. However, those figures do not include full debt service from the high school renovation project, which was another point of contention.
Speakers criticized the fact that ARPA funds were used for the school project rather than the town. They also objected to the debt service impact from the school and the small graduating class size.
School debt amounts added to impact
The figures including the debt for the David Prouty High project were also presented.
Using the three-year scenario, for the average home valued at $393,739, the tax bill would go from $4,622.50 to $4,873.77 in 2026, an increase of $251.28.
In 2027, the bill would increase to $5,530, or by $656.23.
The following year, it would be $5,817.72, up $287.73.
There is an assumed 6.79% increase in total valuation per year factored in. (That percentage represents the average valuation increase from 2015 to 2025).
The current tax rate of $11.74 rises to $12.48, $12.75, and $12.16 over the next three years before going to $11.61 in 2029, according to the administrator.
A calculator will be going online whereby residents can determine what their taxes will be based on their property values.
The override would fund the required school spending contribution set by the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Bridges noted the increase in 2026 is $554,258 and the levy increase is capped at $455,995.
“This is the number one driver of our budget problem,” Bridges said. “We’re in a structural deficit with the requirement vastly exceeding what we can raise. We have no choice in the matter.”
During a phone interview with the Spencer Journal prior to the meeting, Bridges was asked what would happen if the town did not pay the required school contribution. He explained the state would withhold or deduct from other government aid the state provides to make up the difference.
“One way or another, it gets paid,” Bridges said.
“No one says it is an easy ask,” Bridges noted in the interview. “People are tapped out.”
The town administrator said that both Town Meeting and voters through the election ballot must pass the override for it to take effect.
He said other reasons for an override request include unfunded pension liability, the rising price of health insurance (employees pay 40%) and “goods and services across the board.”
“When capped at 2 ½, we can’t meet the obligations of the Commonwealth,” he said. “People say, `live within your means.’ What do you want to live without?”
Other requests outlined
The override question seeks $100,000 toward unfunded pension liabilities and $100,000 for OPEB liabilities (which are the other benefits besides pensions that retired town employees receive).
Another $100,000 would be to maintain and improve infrastructure including buildings, roads, drainage systems, parks and dams.
Also on the list are requests for two additional highway employees ($85,000 and $86,000), two additional police officers ($121,000 and $125,000), funding to retain four firefighters currently paid by grant ($180,575 in year two and $187,815 in year three) and payment of the Spencer Rescue Squad contract ($150,000) over three years.
Superintendent of Utilities and Facilities Pete Boria, Police Chief Mike Befford, Fire Chief Robert Parsons and Spencer Rescue Squad president Patrick George were at the meeting to further elaborate on their departments’ needs.
(More on those presentations will be featured in an upcoming article in The Spencer Journal).
