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Board of Estimate and Taxation to draw on reserves for 2027; discusses meeting schedule to ease quorum conflicts
Summary
BET staff proposed using $132,287 of reserves rather than increasing the BET levy for 2027 and commissioners discussed moving meeting days or adjusting times to reduce recurring quorum conflicts with other board duties.
Christina, the BET executive secretary, presented the board’s draft 2027 internal budget and reserve outlook. She said the BET had roughly $325,000 in reserves at the end of 2025, and proposed drawing $132,287 from reserves in 2027 rather than seeking a levy increase for the board’s own small portion of the property tax levy (the BET levy represents under 0.02% of the total property tax levy).
Christina said the BET’s 2026 reserve usage was projected at about $111,000 but actual spending is tracking slightly below that figure; she recommended using reserves while moving to a gradual levy approach in the 5‑year plan rather than a single large increase. The board accepted the presentation for filing.
On scheduling, President Brandt raised repeated quorum problems and asked whether the board should alter meeting day or start time. Commissioners discussed options: Commissioner Olsen said starting earlier than 4:00 p.m. would be difficult and floated Mondays or Tuesdays as alternatives; Commissioner Payne suggested pursuing a technical charter amendment to permit a vice chair substitution in limited cases and offered to sound out council members about whether that would be non‑controversial.
The clerk received and filed the BET budget materials and the meeting was adjourned.
