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Canterbury select board presents 2025 municipal budget; $500,000 from reserves used to lower taxes
Summary
Select board members outlined a 4.9% increase in the town operating budget for 2025, described $500,000 draw from unreserved fund balance to reduce taxes, and reported capital projects and personnel changes including broadband completion, ARPA-funded dirt-road repairs and police promotions.
The Town of Canterbury select board presented a proposed $3,485,250 general municipal operating budget for 2025 and said it will use $500,000 from the town’s unreserved fund balance to reduce the tax burden for this year.
Why it matters: The $500,000 draw is described by the select board as a one-time measure to ease what they said were high December tax bills; officials warned the town cannot repeat that use of reserves indefinitely and outlined staffing, insurance and capital pressures driving the budget increase.
Select Board Chair Scott Doherty summarized the town’s financial position before the assembly voted on the budget. Doherty said the town entered the process with a healthy unreserved fund balance of $1,408,380 and capital reserve savings of $1,042,740. He said selectmen used $500,000 of unreserved fund balance to “reduce the amount needed to be raised by taxation” this year and called that a one-time fix. Doherty described the proposed operating budget as up 4.9% from 2024, driven primarily by wage and benefit pressures.
Doherty and other officials told voters the select board gave eligible town employees a 4% salary increase for 2025 while the Consumer Price Index rose about 3% in 2024. He reported that the town’s health-care line increased substantially and that the select board changed the highway-department budgeting practice to show the cost if all eligible highway employees elected health insurance. Doherty said the town’s health-insurance budget line increased by 43% year over year and that the town added a second insurance option that produced roughly $21,000 in savings.
Doherty also reviewed recent capital and personnel items. He said Comcast is nearing completion of the town broadband buildout, with about 20 residences still awaiting service. He reported the town will use a $257,956 federal American Rescue Plan Act grant to repave selected sections of dirt road and that several long-term bonds retire in 2025–2026. On staffing, Doherty reported vacancies in police and highway departments, the resignation earlier in 2024 of a full-time police officer, and a recently filled temporary land-use administrator post (Jan Stott) while the town continues a permanent search.
During questions, residents pressed line-item increases. Rick Crawford asked about an increase in cruiser maintenance to $15,000; officials explained that last year only one officer had a take-home cruiser and the town now offers take-home cruisers to all full-time officers, increasing projected maintenance costs. Resident Bob Stinson praised the broadband rollout and thanked town staff for pursuing state and federal funds that officials said helped complete the project.
After discussion, voters moved and seconded the budget motion (mover: Polly Birrier; second: Rick Crawford) and approved the general municipal operations appropriation.
Ending: Select board members urged continued attention to recruitment and retention for town departments and said the select board will monitor reserve levels to avoid repeating the one-time reserve draw.
