New Britain Common Council Special Meeting - May 27, 2026

The New Britain Common Council held a special meeting on May 27, 2026, from 6:31 PM to 7:33 PM, with 14 members present. The council considered and voted on the mayor's proposed budgets for fiscal year 2026-2027, including the general fund, special revenue funds, enterprise funds, and capital improvement program. Multiple amendments were debated regarding the use of additional state aid, fund balance transfers, and revenue adjustments. The final budget package was adopted after several votes.

Consent Calendar

• Item 1: Accepted the reports of the committees on planning, zoning, and housing regarding the mayor's proposed general fund, special revenue, enterprise, and capital improvement budgets. Approved unanimously.
• Item 2: Accepted the reports of the committees on administrative, finance, and law and public service regarding the same budgets. Approved unanimously.

Discussion Items

• Item 3 – General Fund Budget Resolution: Alderman Santiago moved to adopt the budget with an amendment to decrease the use of fund balance by $2,311,389, increase the transfer to the medical self-insurance fund by $1,289,713, and increase the Board of Education (BOE) non-operating grant to $13,292,000, using $4.6 million in additional state aid secured by the mayor and state delegation.
  • Alderman Simpson proposed a substitute amendment to increase the tax collection rate from 97% to 98% and adjust several revenue lines (electrical permits, plumbing permits, etc.) to generate additional funds for education and the library. After debate, the amendment was rejected by voice vote.
  • Alderman Smedley then proposed an amendment to transfer $1.6 million from the fund balance to the BOE non-operating account. This failed by a roll call vote of 5-9 (5 in favor, 9 opposed).
  • The original amendment (Santiago) was then voted on and passed by a roll call vote of 9-5. The budget as amended was adopted.
• Item 4 – Special Revenue and Enterprise Fund Budget: Alderman Santiago moved to amend the budget, decreasing the VOE medical self-insurance fund to $31,859,162, the city medical self-insurance fund to $15,450,941, and increasing the workers' compensation fund to $4,990,097. These changes provided $450,430 in savings to the school district. The amendment and the item as amended were adopted unanimously (14-0).
• Item 5 – Capital Improvement Program Budget: Alderman Santiago moved to amend the mayor's proposal by removing funding for Station 1 roofing and adding $400,000 (estimated) for IT infrastructure hardware and fiber, citing the need for cyber system improvements. The amendment and the item as amended were adopted unanimously (14-0).

Key Outcomes

• The general fund budget for FY 2026-2027 was adopted with the Santiago amendment, maintaining a flat mill rate and using $2.3 million less from fund balance than originally proposed.
• The special revenue and enterprise fund budgets were adopted with an amendment saving the school district $450,430 in health insurance costs.
• The capital improvement budget was amended to redirect funds from Station 1 roofing to IT infrastructure improvements.
• All five agenda items were approved, with the general fund budget passing by a 9-5 vote and the other items passing unanimously.