Board of Finance Approves $115M Budget, 3.92% Mill Rate Increase

The Darien Board of Finance signed off on a $115 million operating budget for FY 2012 on Thursday, a 4.94 percent increase over 2011.

Board members also okayed a mill rate of 12.20, a 3.92% hike from the current rate of 11.74. The mill rate represents the tax dollars owed on properties per $1,000 of assessed value.

As approved, the spending package includes a $38.8 million municipal budget and a $76.3 million school budget.

That represents a net reduction of $1.18 million from the versions originally submitted to the board, though members actually approved a slight increase to the Board of Education's proposal in order to cover post-employment benefits and a rise in the cost of fuel.

But the board's decision not to trim the Board of Education's request — 6.4% larger than the previous year's budget — was accompanied by a warning: avoid future overruns.

"You own this budget more than you have any year before," said finance board member Gwen Mogenson.

The Board of Education is set to vote on a special appropriation Tuesday to cover a projected FY 2011 shortfall of about $408,000. , according Darien Public Schools finance director Richard Huot.

"For the 2012 budget, I'm telling you right now that I'm not going to vote for an overrun," finance board member Murry Stegelmann said.

Thursday's mill rate increase might have been even larger had the board not raised its collection rate assumption on Thursday from 98.5 to 98.9 percent. Members noted during the budget process that the town's real collection rate has not dropped below 99 percent in at least a decade.

The Board of Finance also approved a separate $1.43 million budget for school capital projects.

The budget now moves to the Representative Town Meeting for consideration at its May 9 session.

"So ends another budget year," chairman Liz Mao declared at the end of Thursday's meeting.