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Chittenden Solid Waste District board acknowledges draft FY2027 budget; no municipal assessment expected
Summary
The Chittenden Solid Waste District board voted to acknowledge receipt of the draft fiscal 2027 budget, which staff said is intended for further refinement and is not proposing a municipal assessment; key assumptions include a 4% inflation factor and a 10% health-insurance increase.
The Chittenden Solid Waste District board on Nov. 19 acknowledged receipt of the draft fiscal year 2027 budget and authorized staff to continue developing it through the normal budget process. The motion passed by voice vote.
The district’s director of finance, John Valpara, described the draft as a working document created from historical trends and new spreadsheet tools imported into NetSuite. He said key external assumptions include a 4% general inflation factor and a 10% increase in health-insurance costs. Valpara also told the board he built in an expectation of roughly a 3% reduction in inbound volumes at the Materials Recycling Facility, and budgeted an Average Commodity Rate (ACR) of 75 after a Q1 2026 ACR of about 72.
Executive Director Sarah (first name provided in the meeting) told commissioners the draft is being prepared early to meet charter deadlines and to give member municipalities time to review. She said staff is not proposing a municipal assessment in this draft: “We are not budgeting for municipal assessment,” Sarah said, noting that draft budgets are distributed to member cities and towns so local legislative bodies can consider them in advance of town meeting day.
The board heard several operational assumptions: a proposed MERF (Materials Recovery Facility) tip fee increase from $90 to $95 to better align with regional private MRF pricing; an organics-recycling-facility (ORF) tip-fee adjustment shown in the draft from $70 to $74 per ton; and a projected 4% lift in certain revenue lines to capture higher trip volumes. Valpara said staff aims for budget-to-actual variances of roughly 3% absent a major event.
Next steps include a full finance-committee review in February (an all-day line-by-line session) and a public hearing on the proposed budget no later than Jan. 31, 2026, before the draft is distributed to member municipalities for their votes. Under the district charter, if a municipality does not act within 45 days the draft is deemed accepted.
