WESTFIELD – The Finance Committee met Tuesday to go over their recommended cuts to the Mayor’s $139 million budget. Half of the City Council members were present, who also offered additional cuts, or in some cases, lower reductions.
By the end of the meeting, the Finance Committee’s recommendations added up to $1,693,000, plus an additional cut of $193,100 for the 1% across the board raise for city workers. On top of those numbers, another $183,392 from other councilors was added in, for a grand total of $2,069,492.
“As of right now, if we passed everything on here, we’d have close to a zero percent tax increase,” said At-Large Councilor and Finance Committee member David Flaherty at the meeting.
DAVID FLAHERTY
The Finance Committee will bring the cuts forward as motions in Wednesday’s meeting of the whole City Council, who will vote for or against each cut. In some cases, if the higher number is voted down, lower numbers recommended by other councilors will be brought forward as motions.
A good example of that process will be the school budget. The Finance Committee had previously voted for a cut of $600,000 at the budget hearing with the school department on June 7. If the $600,000 is not voted for by seven councilors, the number needed to pass each motion, then other recommendations including $400,000, $300,000 and $200,000 will be brought forward in descending order.
At Tuesday’s meeting, Finance Committee Chair Robert A. Paul, Sr. asked Westfield Public Schools Business Manager Ron Rix if there would be a significant number of teacher assistants cut should the $600,000 pass. Rix responded that there are 20+ teaching assistants in that budget contingency plan who have already received letters.
“The appetite of the Finance Committee was there was no reason for cutting anyone meeting children’s needs,” Paul said.
Other departments facing large cut recommendations from the Finance Committee and other councilors are engineering, the law department, and community development.
City Engineer Mark Cressotti, who attended the meeting, took exception to some of the cuts to his department, particularly for the Western Avenue project, which the Finance Committee proposed cutting from $340,000 to $100,000.
Cressotti commented that the funding that had been in Chapter 90 for the project had been taken out for road improvements. He said if it is cut in the budget, it will have to come from Chapter 90. He said he had originally requested $840,000 for the Western Avenue project in the budget, which the Mayor had already cut by $500,000.
Ward 2 Councilor Ralph J. Figy recommended cutting the salary for the new captain in the Fire Department budget, which he said could be replaced out of the Ambulance Fund.
The Finance Committee also recommended deep cuts to trash collection and recycling, in anticipation of the plan to outsource the service.
In addition to recommending cuts, the Finance Committee will bring forward suggestions for increasing revenue in certain departments, including raising fees for city services. The Committee also voted to bring forward the Meals Tax for a vote at the City Council meeting.
The final budget reflecting Wednesday’s votes will be adopted by the City Council at Thursday’s meeting, and go into effect on Friday, July 1.
