5 Things to Know About Norwalk's Proposed Budget

Kelly Prinz -

1. The combined city and school district budget is $450.5 million, a 3.3% increase from last year. 

On the city side, the proposed budget is $207.8 million, or a 2.5% increase from last year, while the mayor is recommending a $242.7 million budget for the school district, or a 4% increase from last year. 

2. While the education budget is proposed to go up about $9.3 million, it’s less than the 9.7% increase, or $22.6 million increase, the Board of Education requested. 

School officials said that reducing the budget this much could result in larger class sizes and cuts to extracurricular programs. 

“The BOE can only meet this budget target by making additional reductions from its initial request. These reductions will lead to the loss of essential positions at the school level, which will have serious long-term impacts,” Superintendent Alexandra Estrella wrote in a statement. 

3. The city is proposing to use $8 million of its fund balance, or “rainy day fund” to help cover expenses and reduce the amount of taxes for residents. 

Still, depending on which part of the city residents live in, taxes are projected to go up 8.4% to 13.2%.

4. The city’s proposed capital budget, which covers more one-time, infrastructure-type investments, compared to the day-to-day costs in the operating budget, is $54.8 million, $18 million less than requested by city departments. 

Projects in the capital budget include:

  • $4 million for fire station 4 addition/renovation
  • $600,000 for Wall Street Corridor improvements
  • $1 million for sidewalk construction

5. Residents are invited to get involved in the process. 

The public hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, March 26 at 6:30 p.m. See the proposed budget presentation or check out the full budget proposal ahead of time.