SWAMPSCOTT — Members of the Select Board pushed back against high increases in Town Administrator Nick Connors’ proposed 2027 budget in a joint meeting with the School Committee and Finance Committee on Monday night.
The proposed budget includes highly estimated increases in contracts for town employee health insurance and a collective bargaining agreement with the police department. One item that board members acknowledged has caused a stir in the past is a new waste management contract.
“Solid waste is already a sore subject,” Select Board Chair Katie Phelan said, expressing a desire to ensure the board was focusing on the details of the contract. “People are still talking about the size of their barrels.”
Connors has proposed a $1.85 million solid waste budget for FY27 — a roughly 15% increase over the current year. The spike reflects uncertainty surrounding the town’s upcoming trash and recycling contract, which expires June 30.
Connors said recent contract awards in neighboring communities have come in at sharply higher rates. Rather than risk underestimating the cost and scrambling later in the budget cycle, he built the proposal assuming a significant jump. But Select Board members were quick to push back, noting that any contract increase falls largely on taxpayers.
“I’m not saying it was plucked out of the air,” Vice Chair Doug Thompson said during the joint meeting. “This is an unacceptable bottom line for taxpayers.”
The contract itself is incredibly complex, board member MaryEllen Fletcher said. “It’s massive, and there’s so many components to it. It will drive you nuts,” she said. “I just want to make sure everybody on the board knows…a number of people have been working diligently on this.”
Solid Waste Advisory Committee Chair Wayne Spritz has been leading the drafting effort and is expected to submit the Request for Proposal for legal review before it is publicly released through the state’s central RFP system.
One of the biggest shifts is the likely end of manual trash collection. “All of the carriers are going away from manual pickup,” Fletcher said. Automated collection systems, which use standardized carts lifted mechanically by trucks, reduce worker injuries and insurance costs but often come with higher upfront pricing.
Select Board members overall thought the proposed budget, which expanded the overall town budget by over 7% for the second time in as many years, needed a more conservative approach, and a closer examination from all angles. Thompson argued that beginning waste negotiations with a 15% placeholder sends the wrong message. “Something’s gotta give in here,” he said.
The solid waste increase is one part of a broader picture. With the increase in the town’s budget, Connors’ plan includes a proposed tax levy of $68 million that is estimated to raise the property tax rate by $0.87 per $1,000 of valuation. For an average home (valued at $956,516), that would translate to an annual increase of about $849.
That financial pressure is shaping the board’s posture on trash negotiations. While some residents may be willing to pay more to maintain current service levels, others may not have that flexibility, a tension board members acknowledged publicly.
Fletcher framed the situation as the second consecutive year of what she described as an “excessively high increase”. Last year, the town relied heavily on unused levy capacity to close gaps. Doing so again, she warned, would significantly reduce the town’s remaining flexibility and could lead to an override request in the near future.
“If we spend at this level … we’re calling for an override in three years,” Select Board member David Grishman said. “So we need to make difficult decisions today.”
For now, conversations are still ongoing, with the Select Board firmly sending Connors back to the negotiating table on a mission to free up some space in the 2027 budget and get some firmer details on what options are available for the waste management contract.
“I feel I have guidance, and we need to come back to you with more information,” Connors said. “That’s step one.”
