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Finance Committee reviews FY2027 budget overview; chair gives tax‑impact figures for proposed overrides
Summary
Chair Julie Chalfant presented the draft FY2027 budget overview and said the mean home value used was $467,172; she calculated average tax increases of about $42.05 for the Senior Center override and about $163.51 when adding the SCEMS override (total ≈ $205.56). Committee members discussed wording for override requests ahead of Town Meeting.
Julie Chalfant, chair of the Finance Committee, presented the committee’s draft FY2027 Budget Overview during the joint meeting with the Select Board on May 4, 2026.
Chalfant and the committee discussed specific wording and numerical amounts in the draft, focusing on how the proposed tax overrides would be described for Town Meeting voters. During public comment, Jeff Upton asked what average home value was used in the town’s calculations and asked for the dollar impact of the proposed overrides rather than percentages. Chalfant stated, “the average (mean) home value is $467,172, so the average tax bill would go up by about $42.05 with the Senior Center override and about $163.51 with both the Senior Center and SCEMS overrides, so the total increase with both would be about $205.56.”
Margaret Nartowicz reported that the state match for the Community Preservation Act funds is 49 percent when asked about the CPA balance. The committee also clarified that town departments may spend grant and donation funds and the Police Department may spend forfeiture money without Town Meeting approval; otherwise departments require Town Meeting authorization to spend.
Select Board member Trevor McDaniel added that the school superintendent found alternative funding sources for the Deerfield Elementary School cafeteria floor, which would reduce the capital expenditure requested. Committee members discussed remaining meetings and next steps to finalize the budget overview and override wording before Town Meeting.
