Finance Committee recommends elevating police and fire spending review to top strategic priority

The Great Barrington Finance Committee debated rising public-safety spending and voted unanimously to ask the select board and town manager to consider upgrading police and fire spending to a tier‑1 strategic priority, aligning their posture with the ambulance service.

Members raised two central concerns: public-safety spending has become one of the largest drivers of town expenses, and the town should explore shared services, user-fee adjustments and long-term capital forecasting to stagger large projects. "Pursue efficiencies through shared services wherever possible," a committee member said in support of the motion.

The committee also discussed concrete next steps: establishing semiannual reports from the town manager and department heads on public-safety spending drivers; developing a multiyear public-safety capital forecast; and directing staff to identify potential savings, including regional cost‑sharing possibilities. The motion to recommend upgrading police and fire spending posture passed with all members voting Aye.

Why it matters: committee members said reforming how public-safety spending is reviewed could affect the town’s debt capacity and choices about major projects such as a police station. Members emphasized they were not voting to adopt specific fees or capital decisions, but to prioritize study and reporting so policy makers and voters have better information before budget decisions.

Next steps: the recommendation will be forwarded to the select board and town manager for consideration and possible inclusion in the strategic plan.