CHESTERFIELD — Substantial increases for education and health insurance costs make up the bulk of the town’s preliminary fiscal year 2027 budget that has been drawn up ahead of Monday’s annual Town Meeting.
As a result, just about every town department is being funded to maintain level services, but the town is not in danger of an override, officials said.
Voters will weigh in on the proposed $5.3 million budget, up 4% compared to the current fiscal year, at the Town Meeting, which begins at 7 p.m. in Town Offices, 422 Main Road. Some 42% of the budget is allocated for education, and all three schools the town sends children to have experienced bubbling costs.
Hampshire Regional High School costs increased by $137,000, or 28% higher than last year. The Chesterfield-Goshen Elementary School, also known as the New Hingham School, is pegged for a 10% increase of $107,599.
This combined increase is being driven by increased enrollment, according to a report published by the Finance Committee.
“These increases were driven not so much by increases in the school budget themselves, which essentially proposed level-service budgets, but rather by increases in Chesterfield’s student enrollment in both schools compared to the last several years,” the Finance Committee wrote.
However, costs for Smith Vocational and Agricultural High School students are down by $146,274, bringing total education costs up by $125,598 compared to last fiscal year.
Another increase in the budget is a 3% across-the-board pay boost for town employees. The town is also proposing to begin paying a larger slice of town employee insurance benefits next year.
After the Hampshire County Group Insurance Trust announced 20% midyear increases, largely driven by the cost of GLP-1 weight loss medications, the town decided to part ways with the trust and applied for the Group Insurance Commission (GIC), a state-administered health insurance group.
As part of this proposed transition, the town will begin to pay 65% of premiums, a 5% increase, while employees will pay 35% of premium costs as opposed to 40%.
According to the Finance Committee’s preliminary report, this move is being made to help employees cope with the increasing cost of health insurance and to improve retention of town employees.
Retention of town employees will continue being a focus going into the future, as the Collins Center of UMass Boston completes a compensation plan that will detail how the town can provide competitive salaries relative to neighboring towns. The study was not completed in time to inform the FY27 budget.
To accommodate the costs of education and health insurance, line items for major repairs and the financial reserve funds were reduced significantly, while other departments are receiving level-service funding.
Overall, the Finance Committee said the state of town finances is strong. The town has not had an override vote since 2015, which was prompted to invest in broadband infrastructure.
“Chesterfield continues to maintain a strong fiscal position,” the Finance Committee wrote in this year’s report, adding that the town currently has $1.8 million in free cash for capital projects.
In addition to approving the proposed budget and taking care of numerous housekeeping articles, there are also a few notable zoning changes being pitched, such as Article 29 that would approve new state language for accessory dwelling units (ADU).
Article 30 will amend the town’s bylaws so that developers seeking site-plan approval will be obligated, if instructed by the Planning Board, to cover the costs of professional consultants and legal assistants. Failure to comply would be grounds for denying the application, according to the language of the bylaw change.
