u/HRJafael

Summary of the May 20, 2026 Budget Hearing

Hi everyone! This was a long meeting so I apologize for any errors or repetitiveness in this summary. I tried my best to keep up but it’s been a long day. The video should be up by tomorrow on FATV.

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The City Council met for its first Budget Hearing for Fiscal Year 2027 on May 20 with multiple department heads in attendance. The city’s proposed budget was presented and only questions were taken with nothing being voted on during the evening.

Councilors Cragin and Van Hazinga were absent.

• The general fund would be $191,371,167

• The Water Enterprise is $9,997,019

• The Wastewater Enterprise would be $18,316,80

• The Airport Fund would be $1,137,919

• The total budget would be $220 million

“The gaps are getting smaller but the needs continue to grow,” said Mayor Sam Squailia in her opening statement. “Fitchburg can not cut its way into a stronger future.

Mayor Squailia listed different ongoing construction and housing developments in the city.

City Auditor Jacquelyn Cronin went over the budget before the Council.

The proposed budget does not include the cost-of-living adjustments possible with new contract negotiations happening soon.

Health insurance is up 7.5%.

Councilor Cruz asked if the Council could take a recess as the Mayor left after her opening statement and he had some questions for her. The Council decided to continue in the meantime until her return.

Councilor Green asked about the Chapter 70 increase. The city is required to spend $8.1 million more towards the schools per the state but is receiving back $6.5 million from the state.

Charges for trash services are down by $347,200

Total of local receipts (such as motor and meals excises) are down by $52,788, bringing local receipt totals to $12,552,878.

The plan is to use free cash which is $3,776,322 million. $2 million was being held for snow and ice.

Councilor Green asked out of the over $191 million budget what the deficit was. There is a $4.4 million financial gap.

Councilor Beauchemin asked about the amount put in the stabilization funds as opposed to Capital Reserves. For the past several years there was $350,000 put into the stabilization fund account. $250,000 of stabilization funds are being used to help keep the debt service steady.

President Zarrella asked about the fees and permits and wondered if the recent fee increases were affecting the numbers. Jacquelyn Cronin responded that the city wouldn’t see the effect until possibly next year. Building permits were possibly being affected by the economy.

Councilor Walsh asked the investment income and asked Cronin what her suggestion would be for more reliable income. The general fund is subsidizing trash collection and she suggested a possible trash fee.

A recess was taken to see if the Mayor would return which she did after about 20 minutes. Her absence was due to speaking engagement with the Fitchburg High School Seniors.

Vice President Cruz asked the mayor about the deficit of $4.4 million and asked why the number in her letter didn’t match. Mayor Squailia suggested for Councilors to read the “Perfect Storm” report by the Massachusetts Municipal Association from last year. Due to inflation, average city budgets grew while unrestricted state aid has not kept up. Vice President Cruz was confused why her statement lists UGGA starting in 2002 when it actually came out in 2010. He asked how the report specifically applies to Fitchburg since the city sees a disproportionate amount of state aid.

Councilor Cruz said that Fitchburg’s UGGA was at 21%.

There was some back and forth between Councilor Cruz and the Mayor and President Zarrella had to remind the Mayor to not interrupt Councilor Cruz while he had the floor.

Councilor Cruz did not see the nuance in the Mayor’s letter to which she responded she couldn’t put more since it was only one page. She would have multiple pages if she could.

President Zarrella had a question about the number of $2.7 million needed to balance the budget and how it was calculated. The Mayor said “we need to sit down and cut $2.7 million.”

Councilor Schultz asked about the recent North Central News segment on FATV and that the city may need a trash fee as the landfill nears closing in the next couple of years.

Councilor Walsh asked if there was an itemized list for the $2.7 million. It is a package of requests and not an itemized list.

Expenditures Overview was up next. There was roughly a 4.5% increase for pensions from last year. Since 1980, the city has been required to fund future retirements. For the next several years the city will continue to chip away at it.

Health insurance is up but the city is working on savings such as pharmacy benefits to help offset rising costs.

Fitchburg Public Schools is going up by $5,497,592 to $98,323,846.

Civic Days is continuing to grow in need and expense and a lot of work is done for fundraising.

The stabilization fund is at $9.7 million and will be up to $10 million by the end of the year.

Councilor Walsh asked the Mayor about Civic Days and and the Civic Days Committee. Meetings are held during the day and after work. Civic Days is the biggest event for the city and a tradition since 1960.

Councilor Schultz asked about moving the retirees to Medicare versus being in the city’s insurance and if it was saving the city some money. The range of savings will be $700,000 to $900,000.

Councilor Cruz asked how many employees were on the Civic Days Committee. There are two employees plus the Mayor. His next question was about holiday decorations. The city used to spend $50,000 to rent but made an investment a few years ago to reduce the cost.

Councilor Cruz asked as well about the holiday decorations and let the Mayor know that $50,000 was actually due to private funds when the real number was $10,000.

The Finance Department was the first department before the Council discussing the Assessor, the Auditor, Purchasing, Information Technology, Parking, and the Treasurer. Everything is pretty much level-funded.

Councilor Beauchemin asked if the increase of $45,000 for the auditor was a step increase. It isn’t as the office is having an overlap with a new hire.

Councilor Green had a question on the IT budget. At one point the Council was told that there were programs and services that IT could provide for the City Clerk’s Office to modernize the databases. IT responded that they could work with the City Clerk to help things become more efficient. Councilor Green’s follow-up was how a request could be made.

Councilor Beauchemin asked about the $65,000 of software support fixed costs and if that was a cost every year. Software costs are going up and the numbers will change due to subscriptions.

Councilor Green asked IT Director Trevor Bonilla about the data processing costs. The contract is up and IT won’t know what the new negotiated contract costs will be.

Councilor Green had a question about the parking budget as well as the parking studies and whether everything was on hold. The parking garage is in need of repair. Software may be the best way to handle parking enforcement. Every parking study that has been done has been for specific reasons while the latest one is for overall parking needs downtown. Dedicated staff is needed for administrative purposes in the parking department. A mobile app is a possibility or contracting a third party to administer a mobile app.

Councilor Beauchemin asked about building repair and maintenance for parking, such as faded parking lines in the garage. There’s hardly any money for maintenance. Parking receipts are used to offset and there’s hope to increase revenues. To make repairs such as painting, it would require contacting everyone who uses the garage. If it’s digitalized, mass messages could be sent out but there’s no capability of doing that right now. Councilor Beauchemin asked why a sign couldn’t be put up to give notice of work in the garage.

Debt service has come down $140,000.

The Building budget was up next to restore a full-time clerk that was cut in 2024.

Councilor Fleming asked about the new full-time clerk at the rate of the current rate of the clerk who has been there for several years. Building Commissioner Zemel said it was budgeted at a higher step than what they were anticipating using. The Building Department budgeted for a worse case scenario as they hire but they won’t know as the position hasn’t been created yet or posted.

Councilor Fleming’s follow-up question was about the part-time code enforcer and their rate. The Building Department has to budget for a higher amount in case they get a much more qualified person for the position.

Councilor Beauchemin had a hard time understanding why the part-time position had such a high hour rate while being outside the union. Building Commissioner Zemel responded that the rate was to match the rates available outside the city in order to attract qualified candidates. Beauchemin questioned if Zemel would be able to manage.

Vice President Cruz asked Zemel about the collective bargaining for unions and the attendance issues. There are not many carrots that can be offered and attendance issues have improved.

The next budget discussed was for the Board of Health. More than half of the Health Department is grant-funded. Because of the regionalization with other communities, Fitchburg is eligible for more grants.

Councilor Fleming asked about the investigation grants and if they’ve been received. The Disease Investigation Grant ends June 30 and others continue into FY2027.

The Human Services budget was next. Veterans had very small increases as it was contractual as well as the Council on Aging but a lot of it was grant-funded.

Councilor Fleming asked about why the receptionist principal clerk was lower now for the Council on Aging. The position was filled at a lower rate than what was requested.

Councilor Schultz asked about the reduction in building and grounds repair. The reduced amount reflects what was actually spent in the last few years minus the masonry project for the Armory which is starting soon.

The library budget will include about 8 more employees as it is mandated by the state. A minimum of 59 hours of operation is required for a city the size of Fitchburg.

Councilor Schultz had a question for Director Deb Hinkle about the custodial needs budget. A part-time custodian is being added as well. The library director suggested that the city will need a Building Supervisor in the future and the new library could be used as an advantageous time to train one.

President Zarrella asked about the personnel budget and what the minimum would be for bare bones and how much flexibility there could be. The library budget was submitted with ideal staffing levels but it could be creative if needed. The library director said she would need some direction if it’s something that would need to be talked about with the Mayor or the Council.

Councilor Green asked the line item of the facilities maintenance coordinator. She suggested that perhaps the coordinator could take more of the role of a possible Building Supervisor. Director Hinkle was open to use the library budget to help train an individual that other Departments could also use and collaborate with.

Councilor Walsh asked about the staffing challenges and requirements with the community spaces. Policies and schedules will need to be made and implemented for the different rooms and new services being introduced and made available. Notary and passport services are being explored.

The Executive budget was next and presented by the acting Chief of Staff Myles Phillips-Wilcox. The total for the Mayor’s Office is down by $3,136.

Councilor Fleming asked for the reduction and it was due to the new rate that the new employee signed on for.

Councilor Green asked if the acting chief of staff meant if he was interim. The Mayor responded that it was a synonym but Councilor Green reminded about the new time frame for interim positions.

The Human Resources department had a third position removed in FY2025 but it is now critical to bring the position back. The Director’s salary item is increased to allow the pursuit of a candidate.

Councilor Walsh asked about the possibility of a new hire for a Director and the salary listed of $130,000 which was listed to help attract candidates.

Councilor Starr asked about contracted services of $50,000. Every Union contract is up on June 30. There is a timeline to provide services needed to help contract negotiations. The number could go up significantly but is dependent on who is hired for the HR Director and if they have negotiating experience.

Councilor Green asked how much time is used to work with the School Department. Discussions are in the works for the School Department to help supplement the HR department. It would be fair to ask the School Department to help chip in for the costs.

Councilor Fleming asked if the three HR workers will be in-house or remote. It wouldn’t work for the city as it’s a very person-to-person job. Some remote work could be possible from time to time depending on the needs of the day.

Councilor Beauchemin asked about if it’s been considered farming out Human Resources. It’s one of the most complex departments for the city and the city would not benefit from outsourcing. There would be possible legal concerns if the city did.

“Multiple departments are running on fumes,” said Mayor Squailia about the reintroduction of a third HR person. While the city’s budgetary constraints have grown, so have the needs of the HR Department. A part-time employee was not considered.

For the Legal Department, the City Solicitor is going up $18,000 to $180,000. Councilor Fleming asked for a ballpark figure of how much the city has paid the City Solicitor. No figure could be given as the information wasn’t before the Auditor.

Councilor Green asked if there would be any benefit of having a dedicated employee versus having contracted legal services. If the city did so, it would only be at a part-time rate. Laws and requirements are only increasing and legal details only get more dense. The City Solicitor does not do direct work with the School Department as they have their own legal services.

“People keep trying to sue us,” Mayor Squailia joked with the rise in cost for legal fees.

Councilor Beauchemin asked the City Auditor for her professional opinion on in-house expenses versus outside expenses for the legal department. She thinks the new model works very well for the fast-pace needs of the city.

The budget for Community Development was next with Director Liz Murphy. The majority of personnel are paid in-part or full by grants.

Councilor Fleming asked for details on the over $10,000 increase for the Conservation Agent to $71,306. The new hire has more prior experience for the salary as well as the salary being updated by 3% since 2024.

Vice President Cruz asked for the general overview of what the grants cover and if they could be moved around. Some grant funding is specific and have stipulations for their use and time.

Councilor Cruz asked what the creation of the Downtown Coordinator was. The city used to have it in the past and is reintroducing it into this budget. Fitchburg State used to help cover costs but declined doing so a few years ago. The department tried to cover it with contracted services but got no responses. The Downtown Coordinator helps small businesses with technical assistance, marketing, using social media, etc. There’s an opportunity to create a downtown business association though prior attempts have fizzled out.

Councilor Walsh asked if the Downtown Coordinator is working to help businesses flourish as best she could with all the construction happening. It has been an uphill battle to help existing businesses. Some A-frame signs have recently been purchased to help get information out and keep people engaged.

Facilities Maintenance was the last department for the night with Facilities Director Bill Hawkins. The budget is down by $7,616 to $344,629. The Facilities Director is responsible for City Hall and the Legislative Building while also going where he’s needed. The long-term goal is to look at each city property and evaluate which are in critical conditions as well as long-term maintenance plans. The hope for the Facilities Department is for them to be proactive and not reactive.