Brookline Select Board sends $23.25 million override question to May ballot after heated debate
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Summary
After hours of presentations, union appeals and public testimony, the Brookline Select Board voted 4–0–1 to place a $23,254,439 operating override on the May ballot (schools $17,944,439; municipal $5,310,000). Board members debated tiered vs. single questions and heard warnings about cuts to schools and public safety if funding falls short.
The Brookline Select Board voted to place a $23,254,439 operating override on the May ballot, allocating $17,944,439 for the public schools and $5,310,000 for municipal departments.
Chair Bernard Green summarized the schedule and stakes at the start of the discussion: “we have until 11:59PM on March 31 to do this,” and later framed the choice as whether to offer voters a single full‑funding question or a tiered menu of options.
Town Administrator Chaz presented staff analysis of multiple approaches and their tradeoffs, including a top‑line, phased‑in option and front‑loaded alternatives. He described the highest amount under discussion as a phased approach with a “top tier equaling the total ask of the town and school of $23,250,000,” and explained the difference between phasing and taking money upfront: timing changes when taxpayers pay and how much cushion the town and schools carry into FY30 and beyond.
Superintendent Bella Wong outlined the schools’ FY27–29 request and warned about program and staffing reductions if the override fails or is undersized. “We were able to reduce our initial forecast for FY27 by $5,800,000,” she said, but noted that deeper cuts remaining would disproportionately affect staffing and classroom supports; she warned a failed override could force the district to remove world‑language, conservatory and many paraprofessional positions.
Union leaders and public safety officials urged the board to approve the highest, full‑funding option. Declan Ward, president of Brookline Firefighters IAFF Local 950, told the board that reduced staffing would be a “direct threat to public safety,” saying cuts would mean “firehouse closures, layoffs [and] reduced frontline response capability.” Justin Brown, president of the Brookline Educators Union, said education and stability for students and staff would be at risk under any smaller ask.
Dozens of residents testified during the public hearing, many urging a single full‑funding question to avoid voter confusion and another round of cuts after the 2023 override experience. Several speakers said incremental or lower questions risked repeating the trust issues that followed the earlier override.
Board members debated whether to add a lower alternative (an 85%‑level question) to the ballot; a motion to include an 85% alternative failed. The Select Board then approved the $23,254,439 question by roll call: Paul Warren, David Perlman, Michael Rubinstein and Chair Bernard Green voted yes; John Van Scoyak abstained. The vote was recorded in open session.
What the vote changes now: the Select Board set ballot wording and the allocation between schools and town for FY27; staff will finalize ballot language, prepare explanatory mailers and publish a tax‑impact calculator for residents to estimate how an override would affect their tax bills. The board and town staff reiterated they must educate voters about the differences between phased and front‑loaded structures before the election.
The Select Board’s decision does not by itself change budgets; if voters approve the question, funds will be raised according to the chosen structure and allocated per the town and school budgets; if the question fails, the superintendent and town administrator said they will submit revised budgets reflecting program and personnel reductions.
Next steps: staff will finalize ballot language and a town mailer, post the tax‑impact calculator online, and continue outreach to explain how the FY27–29 plan would be phased and spent.
