Danvers finance committee advances FY26 operating budgets and flags rising health‑plan costs

The Town of Danvers Finance Committee on Oct. 27 reviewed and approved multiple FY26 operating budgets, from the town manager’s office and department heads to retirement and employee health benefits, voting by voice for each item as the committee moved through its agenda.

Committee members and town staff highlighted a handful of drivers that shaped the budgets: a postage‑related 7.94% increase in the town manager’s operating line; planned consolidation of seven separate telephone systems to a single system (projected to save an estimated $40,000–$50,000 in operating costs); a $750,000 financed acquisition of a preservation restriction on the Rebecca Nurse Homestead; and a projected 10.9% renewal increase for the town’s employee health insurance plan.

The health‑insurance discussion drew the most sustained concern. Benefits staff reported a loss ratio of 96.49% for the current plan year (not including administrative costs, which staff said run about 12–13¢ on the dollar), and total claims for the pool rose from about $13 million in calendar year 2023 to just over $15 million in 2024. Staff and committee members discussed education for employees, possible plan‑design changes, benchmarking against the state Group Insurance Commission (GIC) and the limits of the town’s current pooled arrangement through its carrier, Blue Cross New England.

On pensions and long‑term liabilities, the Danvers Retirement System representative said the most recent actuarial valuation shows the system about 64.5% funded. The retirement board and town are pursuing an 8%…