Sunapee's Selectboard is moving away from its self-imposed 3% annual budget-growth guideline as town officials prepare spending proposals for 2027.
The five-member board, chaired by Anthony Dolan, reached a consensus at its Monday, Oct. 19, meeting to replace the fixed target with two budget scenarios, according to a MeetingWatch report on the session.
One scenario would reflect a 4.3% spending increase. The other would take a "bottoms-up" approach, calculating what it would actually cost to maintain existing town services.
Neither scenario represents an approved budget or a projected property-tax increase.
Inflation raises concerns about 3% target
The Selectboard had asked town staff and the Advisory Budget Committee to work toward a 3% budget increase during the current planning cycle.
At the Oct. 19 meeting, board members and residents questioned whether that target could be maintained without reducing services or postponing necessary expenses.
Participants cited regional inflation of approximately 4.1% and argued that a lower spending target could put pressure on staffing, employee compensation and maintenance, MeetingWatch reported.
One board member warned that "any postponed maintenance is a debt" that would eventually cost the town more.
The discussion highlighted the difference between limiting budget growth and accounting for the rising cost of providing the same services.
Two spending scenarios requested
Rather than continue with the single 3% target, the board directed town management to develop two approaches to the 2027 budget.
The first would use a 4.3% increase as a planning figure intended to better reflect inflation-related costs.
The second would begin with the departments' actual needs and calculate the cost of maintaining current service levels.
That approach could help board members see which expenses would need to be reduced or deferred to meet a particular spending target.
The Advisory Budget Committee had been reviewing a draft budget built around the earlier 3% guideline. The new direction changes the framework for further discussions.
The board reached a consensus on preparing the scenarios, but MeetingWatch did not report a formal vote adopting a new spending limit.
Maintenance and long-term planning
The Selectboard also discussed developing a Capital Improvement Plan to address major equipment and infrastructure replacement.
Participants raised concerns that repeatedly delaying maintenance to hold down annual spending could create larger costs in future years.
The discussion included the financial pressures facing town departments and the need to balance service levels against the impact on taxpayers.
No final decisions on department budgets or a 2027 tax rate were announced.
Next steps in the budget process
MeetingWatch reported that the new scenarios were intended for further review during a budget session discussed for Nov. 19.
However, the town's published Selectboard meeting schedule lists the board's next regular meetings for Monday, Nov. 2, and Monday, Nov. 16. A separate Nov. 19 budget session has not been independently confirmed.
Residents can monitor upcoming agendas and budget discussions through the Town of Sunapee meetings calendar.
The Selectboard's decision changes how officials will compare spending options, but the amount of the eventual 2027 budget remains undecided.
