Billerica Finance Committee Hears $208.7 Million Budget Driven by School Deficit

BILLERICA -- March 7, 2024, Billerica Finance Committee reviews $208.7 million FY25 budget driven by a multiyear school spending deficit. Town Manager John Curran presented the proposed budget to the Finance Committee on March 7, showing a 5.26 percent overall levy increase, the largest since Billerica took on high school debt exclusion in FY18, with education costs accounting for $6.4 million of the year's growth. An independent review by CliftonLarsonAllen found the Billerica school department's true FY24 operating spend reached roughly $83 million against a town-appropriated budget of $76.96 million, a gap filled by drawing down Circuit Breaker reserves, ESSER pandemic funds, and other one-time accounts from $2 million in FY21 to $5.2 million in FY24. The new superintendent froze school spending in October 2023 after identifying the problem and is now proposing a zero-based FY25 budget 7.65 percent above last year's appropriation. Curran said no Proposition 2.5 override is needed because the town holds roughly $22 million in excess levy capacity, the highest among surrounding communities, but warned "it's not sustainable" to repeat double-digit increases; a second CLA engagement is planned to identify further efficiencies. The Finance Committee's vote on the school budget is scheduled for April, with Town Meeting set for May 7.