THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, MArCH 10, 2023 Page 7 The 2024 Fiscal Year Finance Committee launches its annual budget review next week as preparation for Annual Town Meeting begins By Mark E. Vogler T he Finance Committee is set to begin its department-by-department review of the 2024 Fiscal Year budget next Wednesday (March 15), leading off with the biggest one – the Saugus Public Schools operational budget. School Committee members and other offi cials – minus Superintendent Erin McMahon, who is on paid administrative leave – will argue the merits of a $31.6 million spending plan, which is about $1.2 million ASKS | FROM PAGE 6 to register for the town election, I started thinking about running for Town Meeting because I really wanted to get that dog park off the ground, and I called him up and asked him, “What do you think of this?” He said, “I think you should do it, put your papers in and see what can happen.” He enlower than what McMahon requested back in January. But the proposed budget passed unanimously by the School Committee is still close to $1 million more than what Town Manager Scott C. Crabtree has recommended. Crabtree said his proposed education budget is an increase of $500,000 over the Fiscal Year 2023 budget passed by the Annual Town Meeting last spring. Finance Committee members will begin their review of the proposed School Department budget at 7 p.m. in the fi rst couraged me to do it. So, I called a few of the other Town Meeting members and asked them, “What do you think?” And they said “Yeah. Go for it.” And then a couple of weeks later, Greg passed, so I feel like, in some respects, I’m in his seat. I feel like he’s done a lot for the community and everybody knew him well. Q: What has been a big issue fl oor conference room at Saugus Town Hall. “The increase does not include the indirect costs paid by the Town on behalf of the School Department and included as part of the total Net School Spending (NSS) calculation required by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE),” Crabtree said in his budget message. When the School Committee passed its budget last month, Committee Chair Vincent Serino characterized it as you have been working on as a Town Meeting member, representing people of Precinct 3? A: Getting a Dog Park for Saugus. I got on the Facebook Page “Dogs of Saugus.” And I started talking over and over about how Saugus needs a dog park. There’s been a lot of focus on Stocker Park as a dog park. The town is still in the early phases of whether or how to make Stocker Park a dog park. “a need-based budget – not a want-based budget.” “The budget is what we need to start the year next year,” Serino said. “We don’t want to cash checks that we don’t have the money for,” he said. The issue of whether the town is adequately funding the operation of the schools often comes up when the Finance Committee reviews the budget for Saugus Public Schools. Town offi cials often argue that there are millions of dollars of hidden costs of pubSo, hopefully, I’d like to be able to say that in the time that I served that we can do something around the parks and be able to get something like a dog park, maybe at Stocker Park. That would be really nice. Q: Other issues that concern you and the residents of Precinct 3? A: I think a couple of other things people are concerned about that aren’t necessarily lic education, especially health benefi ts and maintenance of public school buildings. The Finance Committee is set to review the Police and Fire Department and other public safety budgets when it meets for its March 22 meeting. The committee will meet on most Wednesdays, leading up to the Annual Town Meeting, which is set for the fi rst Monday in May. The major responsibility of the 50-member Town Meeting body is to approve the town’s annual budget. unique to our precinct – but our precinct this time of year has a lot of potholes; we have a lot of rough roads. It doesn’t bother me so much because I drive a big truck. But if you try to get up my hill on a wintery day, you may have some trouble, and if you do get up my hill, you might get damage to your tires because there’s just ASKS | SEE PAGE 8
8 Publizr Home