Sudbury Select Board sees balanced FY27 budget, sets stage for FY28 override talks

SUDBURY -- March 10, 2026, Sudbury's FY27 budget balances without an override, but Town Manager Andrew Sheehan warns one is coming. Sheehan presented a $131.8 million operating budget to the Select Board on March 10, a 5.42 percent increase, with Sudbury Public Schools up 4.17 percent and Lincoln-Sudbury up 3.98 percent. To balance, he proposed cutting the OPEB contribution from $650,000 to $500,000 and funding $325,000 from free cash rather than the levy; the OPEB liability is about $58 million against $19.7 million in trust. Member Dan Carty separately demanded an open discussion of Sept. 26 and Dec. 2 meetings among Sheehan, Chair Lisa Kouchakdjian and SPS Chair Karen Jones, calling for transparency on "the road ahead, both near term and longer term" for school finances. The board also voted 5-0 to make May 3 "Be Like Zach Day" in perpetuity, honoring 16-year-old Zach Wall, and appointed Doug Kaplan, Isabel Kane and Sumit Kaswani to three committees.