Reading, MA — Town Manager Matt Kraunelis, along with Chief Financial Officer Sharon Angstrom, concluded the Select Board’s review of the proposed Fiscal Year 2026 budget with a spending scorecard showing a total proposed FY 2026 municipal budget of $36,744,291 which is a 3.6% increase over FY 2025. Also proposed is a shared costs budget of $32,424,113, a 2.8% increase, and an Enterprise Funds budget of $18,066,496. These, along with an expected School Department budget of $58.3 million, brings the entire FY 2026 proposal to just over $145.5 million. The School Committee will be considering its budget in January.
“Things are getting tighter and tighter,” Kraunelis commented. “But for this year, we will be in pretty good shape.”
These totals were presented after five departments shared their proposed budgets with the board. Library Director Amy Lannon noted the 726 programs provided by the Library in FY 2024 that had 15,723 attendees. The library was open for residents for 3,602 hours in FY 2024 and had over 173,000 users. According to Lannon, this created a 365% return on investment for the community. She then proposed an FY 2026 budget, approved by the Library Board of Trustees, of $2,260,030, a 3.6% increase over FY 2025, with salaries making up 80% of the budget. “[This will] ensure that everyone in the community has access to the resources they need,” Lannon stated.
Director of Facilities Joe Huggins presented a proposed $4,467,367 FY 2026 budget for his department, which is charged with upkeep and maintenance of the town’s eighteen municipal and school buildings. This is a 3% increase over FY 2025. He noted that there will be sharp increases in the alarm, elevator, and pest management lines to keep up with rising costs.
Assistant Facilities Director Kevin Cabuzzi pointed out that there were 3,421 work orders in FY 2024, which was an increase of 401 over FY 2023. Also highlighted was the significant preventative maintenance performed last year, including painting and other repairs.
Technology Director Kevin Furilla also noted rising costs in his proposed FY 2026 budget of $1,298,400, an 8.1% increase over FY 2025. This increase would have been 3.2% if not for an increase in the cost of several software licenses, most specifically security system software, which is increasing by $54,000. This is partially due to the software’s initial three-year contract expiring and requiring a new contract.
Angstrom proposed a $1,295,700 budget for the Finance Department, which is a 2.99% increase over FY 2025. She also shared the proposed Shared Costs budget of $32,424,113, which is an increase of 2.8% over FY 2025. She noted that the Library will be paid off in FY 2025, resulting in a savings of $300 on the average tax bill. However, many will not notice this as housing prices, which affect property tax totals, have increased substantially over the past few years. Angstrom continued to explain that with the Library paid off, the town no longer has any outstanding excluded debt.
Angstrom also reported that the Vocational School capital charge is up by 18.6% as the school building project has completed its borrowing. Benefits such as health insurance and other post-employment benefits are also up by 9.2%.
The town’s proposed capital budget is $3,010,000, which is in keeping with Finance Committee (FinCom) guidance that 5% of the total budget should be for debt and capital. Highlights in this budget include $100,000 for pickleball courts, $535,000 for road paving, and a new $1.5 million fire engine.
Select Board member Karen Herrick raised a question regarding what the $50,000 for the Permanent Building Committee (PBC) in this budget was used for. Angstrom explained that this was due to unforeseen capital costs that may arise from the committee’s work during the year. In FY 2025, it was used to partially fund the Owner’s Project Manager for the proposed Center for Active Living project. Herrick wondered why, if an issue arose, the PBC could not ask FinCom for the resources from its reserves, allowing the allotted funds in the capital budget to be freed up for other projects.
The Select Board adjourned at 9:30 pm.
