Danville selectmen warn of tighter budget after $350,000 increase; Budget Committee meeting set

Danville Vice Chair Shawn O’Neil said the town’s proposed operating budget is roughly $350,000 above last year’s $5+ million total, with about $150,000 of the increase tied to road work and another $150,000 attributable to police costs. "We’re about $350k over last year’s $5+ million total budget," O’Neil told the Board of Selectmen at its Jan. 5 meeting.

The board discussed how the budget will be entered into the municipal portal and the schedule for the Budget Committee’s public hearing. Shawn asked whether the Selectmen or the Budget Committee staff should upload warrant-article wording and final numbers, and he urged the Selectmen be able to review the Budget Committee’s final default numbers in case further action is needed.

Selectmen’s Administrator Vale VanDoorne-Freeman and board members reviewed the sequence Joe described for budget submission: warrant articles go in first; the Selectmen then present a budget with any changes; the Budget Committee inputs its approved operating budget and then its default budget. Joe said the Budget Committee planned to resolve outstanding items (police details, animal control, parks and recreation, fire department) at its meeting the next night and to schedule the public hearing.

Chair Annemarie Inman said there is no statutory cap on the operating budget and recalled a recent policy approach aimed at keeping annual increases under 10% to avoid alarming voters. She warned that continued tight budgets risk losing experienced staff. "There will come a time that the town’s needs and the appurtenant costs will have to meet," Inman said, noting department heads had submitted carefully prepared requests and that further cuts could demoralize personnel.

Joe described the default budget as a "fail-safe" that keeps essential services running but said town departments may lack room to absorb more reductions. The board asked that roles and responsibilities for the upcoming Budget Committee meeting be clearly demarcated so Vale and Budget Committee members know which tasks each should complete.

The Budget Committee meeting to finalize numbers and schedule the public hearing was reported to be the next day; specific dates and final default figures were not decided at the Selectmen’s meeting.

What’s next: the Budget Committee is expected to finalize its work and schedule a public hearing; the Selectmen will review the posted figures and consider any follow-up actions at future meetings.