Select Board Chair Dan Fox told the Current Tuesday morning that Wednesday night’s budget update is being postponed to next week. Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer was expected to present the town’s balanced budget along with override scenarios.
Fox said the meeting needed to be postponed because the clerk’s office was closed due to snow Monday and the meeting couldn’t be properly posted. As a benefit, the state’s Group Insurance Commission is releasing its new employee health insurance rates on Thursday. That information is key to town budget planning.
At his State of the Town address in January, Kezer announced an $8.6 million budget deficit for fiscal year 2027 and predicted 50+ municipal staff layoffs.
Meanwhile, Superintendent John Robidoux and the School Committee are scheduled to host a community forum Thursday, Feb. 26, to answer questions about the district’s level-funded spending plan — a plan that includes program reductions and staff cuts.
A widening gap
Town leaders say rising employee health insurance, pension and trash costs are driving much of the budget shortfall.
Select Board member Erin Noonan asked Kezer to present different override scenarios.
“What would it look like to preserve our status quo for the next three years?” Noonan asked at a recent meeting. “Also, investing in areas that have been depleted and that are smart decisions for the town.”
Noonan asked her colleagues to clarify where they stand on a potential override — and whether it should be structured as a single-year or multiyear increase.
“Personally, I’m looking for a multiyear plan,” she said.
Select Board Chair Dan Fox agreed, suggesting that a three-year override should include “a commitment that we won’t come back” seeking additional increases.
But Select Board member Moses Grader expressed doubt that voters would embrace such an approach.
“I don’t think Marbleheaders are going to vote on a multiyear override,” he said. “I think that’s a heavy ask.”
Schools brace for cuts
The School Committee’s Thursday forum will focus on the district’s level-funded budget proposal, which keeps spending flat but requires reductions in staffing (nearly 15 full-time positions) and programming to balance costs.
School leaders have said the plan reflects the financial constraints facing the town as a whole. The Feb. 26 meeting is intended to give residents an opportunity to ask questions and better understand how the proposed cuts could affect students and families.
What comes next
The town’s Finance Committee will meet with department heads throughout March to review spending plans in detail. In April, the committee will hold public hearings on warrant articles with financial impacts ahead of Town Meeting.
With override discussions intensifying and department budgets under scrutiny, the coming weeks are likely to shape not only next year’s spending plan but the trajectory of Marblehead’s services and staffing for years to come.
