Sudbury Finance Committee reviews $121.6 million level-service town budget

SUDBURY -- February 26, 2024, Sudbury Finance Committee reviews $121.6M flat town budget with debt service up 76 percent. Town Manager Andy Sheehan told the committee Monday the FY25 proposal funds no new positions and no new initiatives, with headcount holding at 184 against multiple unfilled requests across public safety, public works and town departments. Education accounts for roughly $75.75 million, town operations $23.3 million, and unclassified spending $22.5 million. Debt service climbs to about $4.9 million on the Fairbank Community Center, Fire Station 2, Stearns Mill Dam, townwide drainage, and CSX rail-trail acquisition; the town's January bond sale priced at a 3.53 percent net interest rate. Member Henry Sorett pressed for staff cuts, telling Sheehan, "I want to know what we can prune out." Sheehan acknowledged an override may be needed "in the next few years," saying the town has "very little room within our budget this year."