Politics & Government

UPDATED: New London Republicans Request Budget Information Update Before Referendum

Chairman says 2013 fiscal year budget available online is out of date

The New London Republican Town Committee has requested that the city post updated information on the , saying the document available on the municipal website is out of date.

The $42,323,256 municipal budget, which passed on June 19, will be subject of a Sept. 18 referendum vote after a . The referendum will also decide whether to overturn the mill rate - or tax levied per $1,000 of assessed value - which increases 7.5 percent from 25.31 to 27.22 under the budget. The $40,626,405 budget approved for the is not subject to the referendum.

"The budget document currently available on the city's website is insufficient to explain all the modifications made during this year's very confusing budget process," RTC Chairman Bill Vogel said in a press release. "It is impossible to have an informed electorate if the city does not provide the necessary budget details in a timely manner."

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The PDF document of the 2013 fiscal year budget available on the city's website is dated April 30, reflecting the budget adopted by the City Council at the . This budget allocated $42,045,165 for the municipal budget and increased the mill rate to 27.42.

The council made more changes after . Mayor Daryl Finizio also approved by the council on the , although the council overrode the veto in order to pass a compromise budget in a 5-2 vote.

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"To date, the city has not updated the budget to clearly describe all the approved settlements, transfers, and personnel changes," the RTC statement concluded. "This is vital information needed by voters to make an informed decision on the referendum."

Finizio said in a statement that the administration has been transparent during the budget process and accused the RTC of "trying to score political points." He said 13 forums on the budget have been scheduled prior to the election to field residents' questions, with the first taking place at 2:30 p.m. on Aug. 23 at the .

"The IT and are working very hard on every issue, but staffing reductions in those departments have led to delays," said Finizio. "Staff has assured the administration that the updated budget will be online well before the Sept. 18th referendum."

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