WORTHINGTON — Residents at a special Town Meeting on Saturday turned down a Proposition 2½ override vote. The result signals that funds will likely be taken from the town’s $1.6 million stabilization fund for a second year in a row to plug a $147,527 gap in the current fiscal year’s budget.
According to Select Board Chair Charley Rose, another special Town Meeting will need to be called to approve of a transfer from stabilization funds, and setting a date will be on the agenda during the board’s next meeting on Nov. 18.
During Saturday’s two-article ballot vote, residents were asked approve either $195,000 or $290,000. But residents approved neither amount.
Article 1, which asked residents for the amount of $195,000, was turned down in a 207 to 239 vote. Article 2, which requested $290,000, was shot down in a 92 to 239 vote.
In all, 335 votes were cast out of a pool of 1,038 registered voters in town.
The lower override request of $195,000 would have covered the funding shortfall and provide $45,000 of breathing room to fill in the gaps for the current fiscal year. The higher amount would give the town cushion for unanticipated expenses in future years and likely prevent the need for another override request next fiscal year, Rose said.
Regardless of which amount the voters had selected, an average single-family property valued at $382,004 would have seen an increase in their annual tax bill of $286.50.
The override is not attributed to any specific expense. Rather, the deficit is due to the rapid rise of costs for goods and services while the town’s tax base has remained relatively stagnant in the town of almost 1,200 people, and most expenses left on the budget are fixed expenses.
