STERLING — Voters will tackle a 30-article warrant on Monday, May 6, starting at 6:30 p.m. in the Chocksett Middle School gym.
Much of the warrant is filled with questions to guide the financial future of the town, including the municipal and school spending for the coming year.
But there are a few other questions to be decided.
Money issues
The municipal budget request is approximately $13.7 million to pay the expenses to run the town. A line-by-line budget is included in the budget package provided online. The Select Board unanimously recommended approving the municipal budget request, while the Finance Committee voted 5-1 to recommend.
The Wachusett Regional schools budget request is for $13,693,038, which includes the required local contribution, transportation, debt and tuition of $10,715,733, plus an “above minimum contribution” of $2,977,305.
In the past, the two parts of the budget have occasionally been separated, and they were initially separated in this year’s warrant. But a representative of the Wachusett School Committee pointed out that if any part of the budget is rejected by two member towns, it would have to go back to the School Committee; she requested it be one article.
Although members of the Finance Committee objected — that committee initially voted to support the $10 million, but not the “above minimum contribution” — the Select Board combined the two articles. The Select Board is recommending the budget be approved this year, but that the School Committee be asked to investigate the increase in discretionary spending in the future. The Finance Committee does not recommend approval, pointing out that the “over minimum required” discretionary request is an increase of 15.5%.
The Montachusett Vocational Regional School Assessment is also on the warrant for approval; the town’s assessment is $1,132,732. Although that is an 11.35% increase, the Finance Committee is joining the Select Board in recommending it because the figure only includes the town’s minimum required contribution, transportation and debt service costs, with no “over minimum required” discretionary request.
Another financial request is from the Fire Department, for $107,740 to fund an additional full-time firefighter/paramedic ($77,740 for salary, $30,000 for benefits and insurance) to bring the full-time staff to nine, including the fire chief. Initially, the department requested two new members.
The Select Board recommended the new position be approved, but the Finance Committee did not. In its report, the Finance Committee said it “stands firm in its position against the addition of any new full-time staff positions for the coming year.”
Other financial questions are routine, including snow and ice spending, fund transfers and elected official salaries, which are part of the consent agenda, addressed in the warrant found online.
In addition, several articles ask to pay for running the Water Department expenses through the Water Enterprise Fund and related accounts. The Select Board recommended approval of all those requests, while the Finance and Capital committees recommended approval, but with split votes.
There are a few items under the Capital Improvement Plan with a total of $892,796 for expenses, including Jaws of Life and air packs for the Fire Department; tasers and a specialty vehicle for the police; trucks, mowers and engineering for the DPW; $14,000 for School House repairs for the Historical Commission; and $75,000 for a phone/intercom system for the schools.
A complete list is available in the online warrant.
The capital items include borrowing for road work and Butterick windows.
Non-financial items
Voters will be asked to update the job classification plan to move the meal site coordinator to a higher job grade, and update the salary schedule for a 3% increase for employees.
The Select Board included a question, brought by a member of the Board of Health, to require notification by the Board of Health to every person or entity that pays property tax in the town “whenever the Sterling BOH intends to enact a regulation which exceeds the state minimum requirements for subsurface disposal of sanitary sewerage,” a further response to the BOH increasing requirements for Title 5 testing to above state requirements two years ago.
Board of Health member Richard Lane had proposed the item, which could have been brought forward as a citizen’s petition if the Select Board had not agreed to put it on the warrant. Lane said that, currently, such meetings looking at regulations are only published in newspapers as legal ads, so “taxpayers may not receive fair notice of the regulation change.”
Both the Select Board and Finance Committee recommended approval.
At the request of the police chief, there is an article to petition the state for special legislation to “increase the age of special police officers in the Town of Sterling to age 70,” rather than the current maximum age of 65.
The Select Board recommended approval, while the majority of the Finance Committee (5-1) recommended approval.
There is one citizens’ petition on the warrant to only pay the net minimum contribution for the Wachusett School District. As a citizens’ petition, it is included on the warrant, as worded by the proponent, who will address it on the town meeting floor.
