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City finance director: structural gap remains as assessments and contract costs climb
Summary
City Finance Director Brian Ailes told the joint meeting Beverly faces a structural budget gap driven by employee costs growing faster than revenues, with an initial $3.9 million divergence; rising Essex Tech assessments, school choice and charter tuition increases, and a likely higher sanitation contract were flagged as major uncertainties.
City Finance Director Brian Ailes presented an updated FY27 budget outlook to the joint Beverly City Council and School Committee meeting on March 18, describing a structural divergence between spending and revenue that requires policy choices and further refinement.
Ailes said the forecast showed employee-related costs (health care, pensions, salary steps) growing at roughly 6.6% annually compared with revenue growth of about 4.6%, producing an initial gap in the December financial forecast of roughly $3.9 million. He highlighted…
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