Millis town meeting adopts $48.2 million FY2027 budget as HCA funds near exhaustion

John Lohr, chair of the Finance Committee, told Town Meeting the committee unanimously recommended approval of the FY2027 operating budget, which totals about $48.2 million and represents a 3.5% increase from the current year. "I'm pleased to present… a $48,200,583 balanced budget for fiscal year 2027," Lohr said, noting that Host Community Agreement funds that have paid for services such as social work, extended library hours and a school resource officer will be exhausted after FY27 and that those services will need to be absorbed into future operating budgets.

The budget package includes several above‑level service additions: a promotion of a police sergeant to lieutenant and one additional full‑time police officer, and increased funding for the Council on Aging to expand driver hours and member services. The Finance Committee voted 9–0 to recommend the article.

Lohr and other presenters framed the budget as balanced while cautioning that structural pressures — rising school expenditures, employee benefits costs and inflation — remain. They said the town historically saw average increases near 4% and that the FY27 plan reflects efforts to adapt to changing needs without an override. After brief public discussion, Town Meeting approved the budget unanimously by voice vote.

The budget’s presentation included a revenue and transfer summary and several internal transfers (sewer, water, and stormwater indirect cost transfers to the general fund) that were part of the Finance Committee report. The moderator confirmed passage by unanimous voice vote. The town will move forward with the FY27 spending plan beginning July 1, 2026.