No relief in sight for Dracut deficit

DRACUT — No relief is in sight from the town’s projected fiscal 2025 deficit, which is now expected to be about $3 million, up from a $2.1 million projection given as recently as November.

“The math simply does not work,” Town Manager Ann Vandal told The Sun.

“Without an infusion into the revenue stream, we will be making significant cuts in the budget that will disrupt customer service,” she added.

State aid numbers released to cities and towns two weeks ago “are in line with our assumptions except for Chapter 70 aid,” Vandal said. Chapter 70 funding is expected to be level-funded in fiscal 2025 instead of an anticipated increase.

“At this juncture, state aid is expected to rise by only 1.2% and this coupled with the 2.5% we are allowed to raise via taxes will not be sufficient to meet our obligations,” the town manager said. By law, cities and towns can only raise their tax levy by 2.5% annually.

Although exact numbers will not be certain until the state Legislature approves and the governor signs a final budget, she and her team are working with the $3 million deficit projection..

In addition to the Chapter 70 funding issue, Vandal said they have to account for “double-digit increases in most fixed costs.”

At recent meetings of the Board of Selectmen, she has highlighted a 25% increase in trash removal costs. But she is negotiating to bring that figure down. Other problem areas include insurance, assessments for charter schools and Greater Lowell Technical High School, and employee benefits.

In the coming weeks, Vandal and Assistant Town Manager/Finance Director Victor Garofalo will be working to find one-time sources of revenue, but any such revenues will become part of an already-anticipated deficit for fiscal 2026.

In fact, Dracut may be facing years of deficits. Vandal expects, however, “to present a balanced budget to the Board of Selectmen and Finance Committee that will include some painful cuts, the use of one-time reserves, and recommendations on solutions to resolve the lingering revenue shortfalls.”

One group that has already openly expressed its fears about the consequences of budget cuts is the police department. More than 20 sworn officers, including Police Chief Peter Bartlett and Deputy Chief David Chartrand, attended a recent meeting of the selectmen’s Public Safety Subcommittee to express their concern.

The town’s police force is understaffed compared to area towns of similar sizes to Dracut. Dracut, with a population of 32,056, has 45 officers, some of them on injured leave, and Chelmsford, with a population of 35,906, has 56. Tewksbury, with a population of 31,000, has 67 officers. That’s according to figures given by Selectman Joe DiRocco.