Board sets FY27 mill rate, appoints CLA as auditor and directs limits on further legal billing

At its May 5 special meeting the Easton Board of Finance set the fiscal year 2027 mill rate at 33.15 for real estate and personal property and 32.46 for motor vehicles, adopting a budget that includes a $1,000,000 appropriation from the Undesignated Fund Balance toward a FY27 budget of $53,997,174. The motion to set the mill rate carried 6‑0.

The Board also voted to appoint CLA LLP as the audit firm to prepare the Town of Easton’s financial statements for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, citing Connecticut General Statutes 7‑396 and 4‑232. That appointment passed 5‑0 (with one member temporarily absent).

Members discussed newly revealed legal bills dated March 7, 2026 that had not previously been forwarded to the Finance Director. Finance Director Christine Calvert said the additional bills left approximately $17,000 available in the 2025‑26 legal budget after a $50,000 supplemental request approved earlier brought the total to $170,000. Chair Art Laske said he would send a letter to the First Selectman and the Board agreed that future legal work should not proceed without pre‑approval by the Finance Director; members also suggested advising departments and outside counsel to avoid initiating new matters without BOF or Finance approval.

Calvert estimated the undesignated fund balance at $6.3 million, excluding an expected $1.1 million LOCIP reimbursement and anticipated year‑end givebacks of roughly $200,000; Chair Laske emphasized the Board should not rely on anticipated returns when planning uses of the UFB.

The meeting adjourned at 9:48 p.m.; the Board is scheduled to meet next on June 2, 2026.