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Select Board warns of steep FY27 drivers: police wages, reserve contributions and capital costs push draft tax estimate far above target
Summary
Staff told the Richmond Select Board that proposed FY27 contributions to reserves and a plan to fund a full‑time police chief and higher police wages produced an initial tax‑rate increase estimate of about 18.31% under current assumptions; board discussed trade‑offs including use of unassigned funds and pending FEMA reimbursements to lower the rate toward the 3.7% benchmark.
Town staff gave the Select Board a line‑by‑line review of the FY27 draft budget and identified the largest drivers: adding a full‑time police chief (up from a 50% share), proposed police wage increases to improve recruiting and retention, and larger contributions to capital reserve funds across departments.
"The two big drivers are really wages and associated benefits and...contributions to reserve," staff said in the overview. Police staffing changes accounted for much of the payroll increase; Matt, the lead police presenter, described a proposed staffing model that includes a full‑time chief, a sergeant, a corporal and two officers and said the department proposes a roughly 22% increase in the wage grid to remain competitive with neighboring agencies.
Highway costs also rose in the draft: Pete reported significant market pressure on chloride and road‑salt (vendor consolidation and a per‑ton increase), higher trucking costs for distant gravel sources, and modest increases for tools and fleet maintenance. Fire department and library requests included restored or new contributions to reserves and planned capital items; the tree warden requested a $25,000 line for ongoing emerald ash borer treatments.
Under the draft assumptions the town's projected tax‑rate increase stood at roughly 18.31%. Board members and staff discussed options to narrow the gap to the 3.7% planning benchmark, including funding fewer new police positions, flattening reserve contributions, applying unassigned funds or awaiting FEMA reimbursements earmarked for flood repairs. Staff said they will return with scenario modeling showing the tax‑rate impact of different combinations of cuts, reserve draws and one‑time FEMA receipts.
The board asked staff to prioritize scenarios that show the effects of (a) reducing reserve contributions, (b) phasing in police hires, and (c) applying likely FEMA receipts and unassigned balances, and to present those before the January public budget meeting.
