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Residents urge Lincoln council not to cut police, fire and EMS funding
Summary
Residents filled the council’s open forum urging the town to restore an $11.5 million manager’s budget and warning that proposed cuts (to about $9.9 million) would shrink police, fire and EMS services and risk public safety, training and emergency response times.
Residents urged the Lincoln Town Council on multiple fronts to restore a larger town budget and to avoid cuts that commenters said would diminish police, fire and EMS capacity.
In public comment, MJ said the town’s original manager’s budget proposed $11.5 million and that an alternate $9.9 million proposal represents a near-13% reduction from the prior year; MJ said the change follows a fiscal-year 2025 shortfall of about $10.75 million. “This budget will reduce the police department, the fire department and EMS services each by 20%,” MJ said, adding that prior spending went to wages, benefits and critical training.
Other speakers described local impacts they said would follow staffing reductions. Emily Tilman, a critical-care nurse, said ambulance response delays have already occurred and warned reduced EMS staffing would worsen outcomes. Sean Kelly, who works in the railroad industry, said Lincoln firefighters have responded to previous derailments and warned the town needs trained hazmat capacity. Alicia T., a school employee, said cuts would make beaches and playgrounds less safe for children.
Speakers also urged the council to consider alternatives instead of immediate service cuts. One resident who recently moved to Lincoln urged an employee survey to capture potential cost-saving ideas and suggested using tip-budget funds to cover frontline public-safety positions rather than reducing staffing. Several commenters asked the council to weigh festival and nonessential spending in light of essential-service needs; one speaker sought clarification of the printed agenda's figures after seeing a listed festival cost in the millions and was told the actual festival cost was about $45,000.
The council did not take a final vote on the town-level budget in this portion of the meeting. Members said they would continue discussion in executive session and under stricter conduct rules before returning to a public conversation. The council moved into executive session later in the meeting to consult the town attorney about charter and legal duties and to shape the next round of public dialogue.
