Proposed FY-26 town budget

(4/10) Water and Sewer Budget

Principle projected FY-26 water and sewer revenues include $312,000 for sewer use, an increase of $19,000 over FY-25; and $158,000 for water use, an increase of $22,000 over FY-25. [Note, these revenue projections do not reflect the recently approved 5% water & sewer rate increase.]

Total projected FY-26 revenue for the Town’s water and sewer services is $592,568, a decrease of $26,015 over FY-25’s revenue. The bulk of the decrease is a result of the lack of income from new hookups to the water and sewer systems, which last year added $112,500 to the fund’s balance. This year, the Town is anticipating only $15,000 in revenue from new hookups. When this year’s hookups are removed from the equation, projected actual revenues for FY-25 are on target to be $562,126, $30,442 less than what the Town has budgeted for in FY-26.

A key revenue source for the Town’s water and sewer fund is income from leasing space on the water tower to cellular companies, with T-Mobile paying the Town $33,802, Verizon $24,000 and AT&T $44,124, for a total of $101,926 for all intents and purposes for doing nothing.

On the expense side of the equation, one of the principle drivers is the cost of ProStart – the company hired last year to run the water and sewer facilities at $163,364. This is an increase of $88,364 compared to the cost of the Town’s prior sole operator who retired in September of last year.

Electricity, as Commissioner Bill Rittlemeyer frequently notes, is one of the largest expenses in the operation of both facilities- $92,000 for the waste water treatment plant and $27,700 for the water plant, the FY-26 budget for electricity represents a $11,700 increase over FY-25.

$58,604 is budgeted in FY-26 for repair and maintenance tasks, a drop of $45,604 from the FY-25 budget. Likewise, supplies and expenses projected for FY-26 for both facilities have dropped from $54,000 in FY-25 to $20,000 in the proposed FY-26 budget. However, while the proposed budget for these items have dropped, the actual expense for this year’s sewer costs are well above the FY-25 budget, running to date at $205,584 against the projected FY-25 budget of $32,000.

On a high note, Barnes pointed out that thanks to Prostart, who is now dewatering sludge from the wastewater treatment facility prior to its disposal, the cost of disposal, which is based upon weight, has dropped dramatically. While the Town budgeted $51,700 for sludge removal and disposal in FY-25, so far it has only incurred $18,740, allowing the budget for this line item to be reduced to $30,800 for FY-26, a cost savings of $20,900.

Total projected FY-26 cost of operating the Town’s water and sewer services is $592,568, a decrease of $26,015 over FY-25’s projected cost. However, the projected FY-26 budget is $374,009 less than current actuals for the year-to-date of $644,386 as of the end of February.

General Operating Budget

On the general operating side of running the Town, the principle projected sources of income for the Town for FY-26 include $28,860 from real estate taxes, an increase of $17,860 over FY-25; $190,000 from income taxes, a decrease of $10,000 from FY-25; $137,500 from the County revenue sharing, a $2,500 increase over FY-25; and, $119,827 from state highway taxes, a increase of $26,543 over FY-25, for a total projected revenue of $781,127, an increase of $47,840 from the FY-25 budget.

On the expense side of the equation, the principle drivers in next year’s budget are $148,000 for salaries, a $25,097 increase over FY-25; $76,500 for garbage collection & disposal, roughly in line with FY-25; $80,000 in new town hall expenses, down from $150,000 in FY-25; $173,585 for street upkeep and repair, $68,177 over FY-25 [most of this will be spent on repaving 2nd street]; $69,420 on parks, a $18,290 decrease from FY-25; and, $55,000 for the purchase of a new truck for the town.

Total projected cost of running the Town, absent the water and sewer systems, is projected to be $781,127 in FY-26, which represents a 50% increase over the FY-24 budget of $521,116.