Middleton finance committee reviews fire and police budgets; minutes approved, insurance rates bring $300,000 savings

The Middleton Finance Committee on Feb. 17 reviewed departmental budget requests and heard updates on benefits and school planning.

Fire Chief Doug LeColst presented a supplemental request for a Deputy Fire Chief, a position the committee had previously voted not to fund at the budget hearing because of a substantial town budget deficit. Co-Chair Richard S. Gregorio reiterated that the Deputy Chief and a proposed shared administrative assistant with the Police Department were not funded at that time and said the Deputy Chief request "may be revisited at the March 7th meeting." Chief LeColst also said the four additional firefighters funded through the override "should be fully trained and operational within six months." Committee members emphasized that long-term staffing costs, including OPEB and retirement, must be factored into any true-cost calculations for positions.

The committee approved minutes from its Nov. 20 Finance Committee meeting. The motion to approve was made by Tom Martinuk and seconded by Co-Chair John Erickson; the motion passed by roll-call vote 4-0-1, with Michelle Cresta recorded as abstaining.

Police Captain Matt Armitage provided an overview of the Police Department's proposed FY27 budget. Key elements include salaries tied to a tentative agreement with the police union; utilities consolidated with the Fire Department into a common budget; increased training to send officers to the Academy; higher clothing and uniform costs to outfit new hires; and cruiser maintenance and fuel costs adjusted to reflect prior under-budgeting rather than changes in fuel price. When asked whether the fuel change reflected price or usage, Armitage clarified it was a correction from being under-budgeted to being fully budgeted. Committee members discussed the potential need to factor increased fuel usage and cruiser replacement into future override planning. Finance Director Sarah Wood said she will provide tables and charts to show crosswalks of shared costs in the Finance Committee report.

Under other business, Co-Chair Gregorio asked about health-insurance rates. Finance Director Sarah Wood said the rates "came in at 2.9% which will save approximately $300,000 on the Town-side of the budget." Gregorio also reported that he and the Select Board elementary-school liaison met with elementary schools; schools remain on track to maintain a 2.5% budget per guidance and are exploring a consolidated office location in Middleton for Tri-Town administrative staff as current leases expire.

The meeting was adjourned at 6:53 p.m. following a motion by Peter Moon and a second by Tom Martinuk.