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Archer Lodge narrows budget tradeoffs; council delays tax‑rate finalization
Summary
At a long June 15 work session, Archer Lodge council and staff cut or confirmed several budget items—capping executive assistant hours at 20 at $20/hour, keeping part‑time HR hours at about 20, reducing the town 401(k) match to 5%, maintaining water/sewer maintenance funding, cutting the parks transfer, and deferring a final decision on health‑insurance plan changes until more numbers are available.
Council and staff spent the bulk of the June 15 work session reviewing the proposed fiscal‑year budget and reached several operational and line‑item decisions while postponing the overall tax‑rate decision until one more meeting.
Town Administrator David walked council through department requests and recommended adjustments. Council signaled consensus to cap the executive assistant function at about 20 hours per week at $20 per hour and to maintain the part‑time human‑resources officer (HRO) at an average of 20 hours per week because staff said recruiting, benefits administration and background checks require that capacity. "I would respectfully request that as town administrator, I be given the flexibility to ... staff that function accordingly," David said when explaining the administrative staffing approach.
On benefits, staff presented two state plan scenarios: keep the current 80/20 plan for the rest of the calendar year and optionally switch to a 70/30 plan starting Jan. 1, 2027. The half‑year savings of changing design immediately were small—about $2,570 by staff’s estimate for the remainder of the year—while a shift to the 70/30 design or requiring employee premium contributions would increase employee out‑of‑pocket costs. Council did not vote on a change but asked staff for clearer numbers and to return at a scheduled special meeting.
Other decisions and near‑consensus items included:
- Reduce the town 401(k) match from 6% to 5% beginning in the new budget year (staff adjusted computations accordingly). - Eliminate the cost‑of‑living adjustment and cap merit increases at up to 3%. - Maintain the water and sewer maintenance budget at $6,000 after staff warned usage will increase as new restrooms and facilities come online. - Reduce the transfer to the public‑safety reserve from $50,000 to $25,000. - Remove funding for batting cages/bullpens from the town capital plan pending pursuit of an open‑space grant; council agreed staff should submit a grant application and, if awarded, bring back any required local match as a budget amendment. - Reduce the "Moscow banners" line and set aside up to $5,000 for one installation and one removal for 250th‑anniversary banners already ordered.
Council and staff scheduled a follow‑up meeting (special session) to finalize outstanding choices and the tax rate; staff said it would need time to recompute revenues under alternative rate scenarios and refine insurance figures before council votes.
