Village board reviews tentative 2026 budget proposing $4.08 million in expenses and 1.75% tax levy increase

Presenter outlined the village's tentative 2026 budget, saying, "Our total expenses of $4,084,341.00," and proposed increasing the tax levy by 1.75% to balance the plan.

The presentation, delivered line‑by‑line by the municipality's Presenter, prioritized routine operating costs, modest salary increases and several capital items. Presenter said salaries tied to village justice would rise roughly 3%, and that some contracted professional services — notably a document‑scanning contract and associated software payments — account for an apparent jump in contracted services this year.

Why this matters: the spending plan includes both recurring operating costs and one‑time capital outlays that affect residents' tax bills and near‑term road and park work. Board members pressed staff for clarifications on vendor payments, contingency changes and where capital project funding will come from.

Key details from the budget

- Total proposed expenses: Presenter stated a proposed total of $4,084,341.00 and described the budget as a roughly 0.24% increase in spending year‑to‑year.

- Tax levy: Presenter said the package includes "increasing that the tax levy by 1.75%." The board did not decide a final levy at the meeting; the figure was presented as the administrator's proposal.

- Salaries and personnel: Presenter proposed a 3% increase for village justice and said street administration and maintenance lines reflect merit or step raises (street admin noted at about a 5% increase; street maintenance roughly 2.7%–3%). Presenter described the raises as budgeted conservatively and framed as merit or standard adjustments rather than an automatic across‑the‑board COLA.

- Contracted services and vendors: Trustees questioned a rise in contracted services to roughly $50,000 this year. Presenter and staff explained the amount includes multi‑year charges tied to two vendors named in the transcript (Edmunds, a software/vault renewal, and a separate scanning vendor referred to as Siri). Staff noted the Edmunds cost covers a three‑year vault payment and that the village sometimes batches scanning projects rather than scanning every year. Committee member pressed whether such contracts could be restructured to allow annual payments; staff said they would look into it.

- Capital purchases and funding sources: The plan includes a replacement six‑wheel dump truck (partly funded by CHIPS and reserves) and a code‑enforcement vehicle expected to be paid for by a grant. Presenter said remaining capital needs (payloader and other heavy equipment) remain on the multi‑year list and that National Grid will contribute toward certain road segments where gas‑main replacement is underway.

- Parks, islands and Flower Hill: Trustees discussed multi‑year planting plans for islands and the Flower Hill slope, including incremental plantings of forsythia and daffodils. Staff said some planting and design work could be funded or supported by partners such as Saint Francis and that grant opportunities for a Veterans Memorial will be explored.

- Contingency and insurance: Presenter reported liability insurance costs are rising, said the 'judgments and claims' line has been reduced because the village has had no sizable claims recently, and noted contingency was lowered from 40 to 30 (the transcript does not specify the unit or whether those numbers are thousands; staff said the adjustment was to help balance the budget).

- Revenues: Presenter outlined expected revenue changes including an increase in PILOT receipts connected to Saint Francis, modest increases in building permit revenue and a conservative forecast for gross receipts taxes and other fees. Presenter said the budget reflects conservative revenue forecasting in some lines and more aggressive assumptions in others (e.g., building permits where activity is high).

Trustee and staff exchanges

Board members repeatedly asked for follow‑up detail on several lines. Trustee raised concern that the village had budgeted $4,500 annually for the village corporation treasurer but spent about $17,000 last year; staff agreed to provide a detailed explanation before the next budget meeting. Multiple trustees asked staff to clarify the structure and timing of the Edmunds/Siri vendor payments and whether the village could move to annual billing.

Quotes from the meeting

"Our total expenses of $4,084,341.00," Presenter said when summarizing the proposed budget.

On the tax levy: Presenter said the draft includes "increasing that the tax levy by 1.75%."

On the contracted services spike, a Staff member explained the Edmunds payment covers a three‑year vault renewal: "For the 3 years ... we have to renew that." (transcript paraphrase; speaker listed in the meeting transcript as Staff member).

Formal action

At the end of the public session Presenter moved that the board adjourn the public meeting and enter executive session to discuss a legal matter at 7:01 p.m.; the motion was seconded and the chair called for a voice vote with "Aye" recorded. The exchange was recorded in the transcript but individual roll‑call votes were not recorded publicly during the motion.

What remains open

Staff committed to returning with line‑item clarifications on the village treasurer expenses and a vendor‑payment explanation before the next budget meeting. Trustees asked staff to investigate contract‑billing options for the multi‑year scanning/service contracts and to bring more precise contingency figures with units clarified.

Ending

The board moved to executive session on a legal matter after the budget review. The public portion of the meeting concluded with no formal adoption of the tentative budget; further budget meetings or a formal vote will be required before adoption.