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New Canaan officials outline FY2027 budget; tentative mill rate rises to 17.126
Summary
Town staff presented a fiscal 2027 budget with a 2.3% increase in general fund operating expenses and a tentative mill rate of 17.126, noting a projected $5 million draw from reserves and several capital requests shifted or postponed pending further review.
Town staff on March 12 presented a proposed fiscal year 2027 budget that would increase general fund operating expenses to $185,229,451, a 2.3% rise over the prior year, and set a tentative mill rate at 17.126, up 2.6% from last year.
Ryan Stacey, introduced to the council as the consolidated budget presenter, told the council the current plan anticipates a $5 million draw from the general fund balance and an amount to be raised by taxation of $169,676,990, a 3.4% increase year over year. "17.126 is where it sits right now," Stacey said, summarizing the present tentative calculation.
Stacey described the multi-step review the budget went through: department submissions in October, a line‑by‑line analysis in December that reduced operating and capital requests, and a Board of Finance review in February that further adjusted operating and capital lines. He said operating reductions and interfund transfers have been used to balance pressures in the plan.
The presentation included projected capital totals and specific assumed revenue adjustments; staff told the council the $5 million drawdown remains an assumption subject to change during final hearings in May and June. Stacey directed council members to summary pages in the budget book and offered to provide a single‑page summary on request.
Councilors asked clarifying questions and requested a written one‑page summary. In procedural business earlier in the meeting the council unanimously approved the minutes of its Feb. 25, 2026 regular meeting.
The council will continue deliberations in upcoming committee and Board of Finance meetings, and staff said final numbers may change before the town adopts the tax rate later this spring.
