Politics & Government

West Hartford Taxpayers Association Will Not Seek Budget Referendum

Town Council can now address issues affecting next year's budget.

For the first time in four years, the West Hartford Taxpayer’s Association has decided not to pursue a budget referendum. The $228 million budget, which was approved by the Town Council on April 26, increases the tax rate by 2.76 percent.

“We basically decided that if we went forward with the referendum, the gain wouldn’t be worth it, and reopening the budget could possibly lead to something much worse,” said George Kennedy, president of the West Hartford Taxpayer’s Association.

The West Hartford Taxpayer’s Association does not want to give the impression that they agree with the approved budget. “[The increase] should have been $0, but the Town Council didn’t tell the Board of Education that they have a spending cap,” said Kennedy. “You don’t give people an open-ended budget.”

Mayor Scott Slifka said he was pleased by the West Hartford Taxpayer’s Association’s decision. “It saves us time and effort, and now we can start work on next year’s budget right away instead of working on two budgets at the same time,” Slifka said.

“Our biggest concern right now is what will happen at the state level. We’re still waiting to find out how that will affect us.”

“State aid is always a big assumption, but if it comes in short, we will have to find some way to address it other than by increasing taxes,” Slifka said. He added that West Hartford’s charter prohibits increasing taxes once the budget has been passed, absent an emergency, whether or not there is a referendum.

The Town Council  passed the by a vote of 6-3. Votes were cast along party lines, with the three Republicans on the council offering numerous amendments and ultimately voting against the budget as proposed.

Town Manager Ron Van Winkle's original budget proposal called for a tax rate increase of 4.6 percent, but he subsequently proposed adjustments that brought the increase down to 2.76 percent. Those adjustments included increasing parking meter revenue by $130,000 and applying $640,000 in surplus funds from this year’s budget.

The approved budget included an amendment which adds a list of five major policy issues for the Town Council to tackle over the next year. These budget drivers include health care, Education Cost Sharing, and the Fire Department’s budget.

Kennedy said that the West Hartford Taxpayer’s Association, which currently has approximately 250 dues-paying members, will focus its attention on educating West Hartford’s voters so that prior to the next election they will be informed about which lawmakers are voting to increase their taxes.

They will also continue to push for West Hartford to establish a financial advisory board.


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