Brookline officials outline FY26 financial plan as schools project $8.2 million shortfall

Town Administrator Chaz Carey presented the Town of Brookline’s initial fiscal‑year 2026 financial plan on Feb. 25, telling the Select Board, Advisory Committee and the newly formed Expenditures and Revenue Study Committee that the town and schools face a structural gap between recurring revenues and expenses.

Carey said the plan “encompasses all of the town’s projected revenues and expenditures, including those that come out of enterprise funds,” and stressed that the presentation is the start of a multi‑week review process that will involve hearings, subcommittees and the new study committee.

The plan forecasts a total spending and revenue picture that Carey said represents a 4.4% increase from the prior year. The school department’s initial, fully loaded request projects an $8.2 million shortfall; the town’s own projected gap for FY26 is approximately $560,000. The budget documents included projections for property tax growth, enterprise activity and appropriations of certified free cash.

Nut graf: The presentation laid out the pressures behind the gaps — rising health‑care costs, collective bargaining, sanitation contract changes, capital and debt service — and identified both one‑time and recurring choices the town must make to balance the budget. Carey and Deputy Town Administrator Melissa Gough told boards they will use hearings and the new Expenditures and Revenue Study Committee to identify structural options rather than rely on one‑time fixes.

Most of the town’s budget growth, the presentation said, is driven by wages and benefits. Carey and Finance Director Lincoln Heinemann emphasized that more than 80% of town and school costs…