Somersworth manager presents FY2026 city budget showing $1.04 million general‑fund increase

City Manager Bob Bellmore presented the Somersworth City Commission with the proposed fiscal year 2025–26 city budget, saying the gross general fund would rise by $1,036,200 (6.07%) and that the proposal was $11 under the tax cap set in the Somersworth city charter.

The budget matters because the charter limits increases in real‑estate tax revenue to the change in the national CPI‑U and separately permits revenue from new construction; Bellmore said the charter formula and a 2024 CPI‑U figure of 2.95% produce an allowable amount to be raised by taxes of $37,366,548 for FY2026. "We're $11 right now under the tax cap," Bellmore said.

Bellmore told commissioners the gross general fund increase includes $648,406 in salary and payroll‑driven costs, $182,556 in other operating expenses, about $113,000 in additional debt service and capital leases, and roughly $92,000 in capital outlay. He said one staffing change already implemented this year was hiring a full‑time assessor after the city's contracted assessor discontinued operations; the proposed budget adds one operator at the water treatment plant, increasing that unit from three to four full‑time staff.

He presented the revenue mix: about 61% of general‑fund revenue would come from property taxes and about 39% from other city revenue. Bellmore said the city tax rate (set each fall by the State Department of Revenue Administration) would move from roughly $18.70 per $1,000 assessed value to $19.27 if the council adopts the budget as presented, a $0.57 increase per $1,000. Using the city’s example, a property assessed at $400,000 would see an annual tax increase of $228, from $7,480 to $7,708 under the proposed budget.

Enterprise funds and capital projects noted in the presentation include: • Wastewater: proposed budget about $3,600,000, an increase of $28,529 (0.79%), and $200,000 for inspection and cleaning of sewer mains along Buffinsville Road and Indigo Hill Road. • Water: proposed budget nearly $3,500,000, an increase of $619,571 (21.54%), including engineering and design to replace a water main on Blackwater Road and upgrades to the water treatment plant. • Solid waste (pay‑per‑bag program): proposed budget $712,150; current bag rates are $2.65 (30‑gallon) and $2.10 (15‑gallon); the budget shows a roughly $56,000 (8.28%) increase in the program.

Capital outlay items Bellmore called out included a $20,000 down payment for planned lease purchases (a police cruiser and a plow truck with leases of three to seven years), year two of a three‑year replacement program for fire department SCBA (self‑contained breathing apparatus) and a $10,000 allowance for fire hose replacement. He said salaries and benefits comprise about 71% of the proposed budget.

Bellmore also gave a department and program snapshot: 94 full‑time and 11 part‑time employees in the general fund (police 40, fire 19, public works 16, finance 17, development services 9, manager's office 4), plus enterprise staff in water and wastewater. He listed contracted services that factor into the budget, including the city's contracted emergency medical services with Stewarts Ambulance.

The presentation closed with Bellmore noting the proposed tax rate changes and the composition of how each $1,000 of tax goes to school, city and county services. Bellmore's presentation preceded the school department's budget presentation; the commission recessed for 30 minutes before its regular meeting.

No formal Council action or vote on the proposed city budget was recorded in the meeting transcript.