Police, Library Costs Jump in Oak Bluffs

By JAMES KINSELLA

For the third year in a row, Oak Bluffs voters will be presented
with an annual town operating budget that does not require an override.

And for the first year ever, town voters also will be asked to
approve a budget that breaks the $20 million mark.

Avoiding an override took some work on the part of the town finance
committee, which sliced $450,000 from town department requests in its
budget review.

As of today, Oak Bluffs does not have a final budget to present to
the voters, although finance committee chairman Mimi Davisson said she
expects the final number will be determined next week.

Ms. Davisson anticipates that the fiscal year 2006 budget will come
in close to $20.3 million, about two-and-a-half per cent higher than the
current budget. The new budget takes effect July 1, the start of the
next fiscal year.

"I wish it didn't have to be so high," Ms.
Davisson said of the operating budget. "But a lot of people worked
very hard on it. We did have to cut $450,000. Every department
contributed."

In the coming fiscal year, the finance committee estimates that
revenues will total about $15.3 million from taxes, about $1.3 million
from state sources, and about $3.7 from local receipts and enterprise
fund revenues.

As for capital requests, John Lolley, a member of the town capital
improvements committee, does not anticipate any large-scale projects
coming before the voters.

The town's current tax rate is 6.07 per $1,000 assessed
valuation. Ms. Davisson said the overall tax levy will be up about 2.5
per cent. Any increase in tax bills would vary from property to property
based on differing valuations.

Proposition 2 1/2 is a state law that requires voter approval for an
increase in the tax levy limit of more than 2.5 per cent a year. Because
Oak Bluffs is at its legal tax levy limit, any increase in the level
higher than 2.5 per cent would require an override.

According to a recent draft town budget, some of the largest
percentage increases among town departments are found in the library
- where total expenses are up 46.3 per cent to $323,518 -
and the ambulance service - where total expenses are up 32.8 per
cent to $267,968.

The town's largest departments show smaller percentage
increases. They include the town school (up five per cent to
$5,077,593), the charge for the regional high school district (up 7.8
per cent to $2,766,467), town highway (up .6 per cent to $1,437,866) and
police (up 7.1 per cent to $1,357,881.)

The town wastewater enterprise fund, which is operated separately
from the general fund, was budgeted at $577,593, up 14.7 per cent. The
bulk of that increase is due to higher insurance costs.

According to the draft budget, spending at the library would
increase $102,314. Nearly all of the added expense can be tracked to
salaries, which are expected to be $96,432 higher than this year.

Ms. Davisson said the higher amount reflects additional staffing for
the new town library now under construction. She said the department
wanted to double its worker base from three and a half to seven
full-time equivalents. The finance committee cut more than $20,000 from
the request, so the staffing increase may be slightly less.

As for the ambulance service, the draft budget shows a proposed
increase of $66,167. Most of that would come from salaries, reflecting
the town's decision last year to upgrade the skill level of its
emergency responders to the paramedic level and to pay for the increased
skill. But some costs also are lower, such as shift pay, which is down
20.2 per cent to $60,890.

Spending at the town elementary school is up $243,856, according to
the draft budget. All of the increase is in the instructional salary
account, reflecting negotiated wage increases. The regional high school
assessment, reflecting higher Oak Bluffs enrollment at the high school,
will rise nearly $200,000 more than the current year.

At the police department, costs would rise about $90,000, according
to the draft budget. More money for salaries and Quinn Bill payments
pushed the police budget higher, although spending is expected to drop
in areas such as temporary summer patrol officers.