Leverett officials back $8.48M budget for next fiscal year

LEVERETT — Leverett officials are endorsing an $8.48 million budget for fiscal year 2027, a spending plan that, if approved by voters at annual Town Meeting on May 2, would add just over $300 to the median homeowner’s tax bill.

At a joint Select Board and Finance Committee hearing Tuesday, the boards both voted to support the budget, which brings with it a 5.5% jump in the tax rate, going from $15.70 per $1,000 valuation to $16.57 per $1,000 valuation.

“It is a big increase,” said Finance Committee Chairman Phil Carter.

The final budget plan would mean a $309.97 rise in the tax bill for the median home assessed at $358,000, whose homeowner currently pays $5,621, while the owner of a $500,000 home, currently paying $7,850, would see the tax bill go up by $432.92.

But Carter explained that many requests from town departments for more spending were turned down, including a fourth full-time staff member for the Highway Department, additional part-time police officers, a deputy fire chief, Friday hours at the Leverett Library and more hours for the Council on Aging program coordinator.

The elementary school also agreed to trim $9,000 from its $2.45 million request, bringing that to a 3.5% increase, and the Amherst-Pelham regional schools assessment is at $1.94 million, a 4.2% increase, but was successfully reduced by working with the other member towns.

“We did try to keep the tax increase as low as possible,” Carter said.

Overall, the budget is up $389,145, or 4.8%, from this year’s $8.1 million budget, with the two main drivers the combined $160,085 increases for the schools and a $105,999 increase in health insurance.

The Hampshire County Group Insurance Trust, of which Leverett is part, provided an 18.5% increase to the town, going to $680,000, after handing out a 20% midyear increase in 2026.

Still, Leverett continues to have capacity in its tax levy and, unlike many area communities, the town is not seeking a Proposition 2½ tax-cap override.

“It’s important to recognize our town is not going for an override,” said Select Board Chairwoman Patricia Duffy.

Select Board member Tom Hankinson said residents should understand that officials are keeping the town’s financial picture healthier by making sacrifices across all departments.

Before finalizing the budget, the boards agreed to add to the $3,726 to the police budget to cover the hiring of a new full-time officer and $172 for the fire budget to bring cost-of-living adjustments in line with other town employees.

Officer goes full time

In other business, the Select Board approved the appointment of Andrew Nepal as the town’s fourth full-time police officer.

Police Chief Scott Minckler said Nepal, who has been a part-time officer for the past 18 months, will be leaving a full-time position at Springfield Technical Community College to take the Leverett job.

“I think he’d be a fantastic addition for us,” Minckler said.

The department currently has nine patrol officers, a mix of full- and part-timers, who serve both Leverett and Wendell.

Because of his experience, Nepal will get additional vacation time, and the board agreed to waive a requirement that he live within 15 miles of the town’s borders.

The Select Board also gave the go ahead to apply for Green Communities funding that would pay for a heating and air-conditioning project at the elementary school and new insulation for the library building.