Danbury Mayor Dean Esposito Introduces City’s FY 2023-2024 Proposed Budget

Today, Mayor Dean Esposito introduced the City’s FY 2023-2024 Proposed Budget which continues Danbury’s legacy as the premier city to live, work and raise a family in Connecticut.

The City’s FY 2023-2024 Proposed Budget lowers the mill rate (tax rate) by 4.89 mills to a historic 23.33 mills, and fully funds the Board of Education budget request of $150 million dollars. The FY 2023-2024 Proposed Budget focuses on building our new transformational education system, supporting our public safety by continuing to add additional staff and infrastructure, fully funding the capital plan as submitted by the planning commission, and takes a strategic approach to our entire city government. The total general fund expenditure plan for FY 2023-2024, including the Board of Education, is$295,750,000.

This represents an increase o$18.25 million over the current year adopted budget of $277,000,000. Spending by the Board of Education (excluding capital) will increase by $9 million. Net revenue from all sources other than current property taxes total $52,019,775 leaving a net balance expected to be collected from local taxes of $243,730,225. Based upon the taxable grand list of $10.45 billion, the Mill Rate will be lowered a historic 23.33 mill rate (tax rate).

Mayor Dean Esposito’s Full Remarks on the Proposed FY 2023-2024 Budget “I am pleased to present my proposed Budget for the fiscal year commencing July 1, 2023, and ending on June 30, 2024. The City’s FY 2023-2024 Proposed Budget boldly addresses the needs of our entire City, and prepares Danbury for generations to come with a focus on the education of our children and the vital services our City provides for our residents. The City of Danbury has been recognized as a municipality focused on efficient and effective government for decades, and we will continue that tradition with this budget. The challenges of the post Covid-19 world continue to affect us, and by working together, we have created a City infrastructure that is ready and able to be resilient and nimble as issues arise.

Continuing Danbury’s Legacy as the Premier Place to Live, Work and Raise a Family in Connecticut
23.33 Mill Rate

This historic reduction in our mill rate, the lowest of any large city in our state, will solidify Danbury’s legacy as the premier place to live, work and raise a family in Connecticut. It will help ease the tax burden on our residents due to record property value gains resulting from the recent 2022 revaluation. Danbury residents will even have a lower rate than all the surrounding towns and communities.

We are able to deliver this incredible rate even as we continue to battle record-high national inflation and persistent supply chain issues caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Our focus remains on the central principles in the City’s Mission Statement to maintain this delicate balance: To ensure a superior quality of life for [our] citizens by providing the most cost-effective municipal services while preserving the cultural, historical, and natural resources of the City.

This past year, we have pulled together as a community and brought forth a message of optimism and determination. I want to again thank all of the residents of the City of Danbury for your support, input and belief in our mission. As Mayor, I am proud and honored to present the Proposed Budget for the Fiscal Year commencing July 1, 2023, and ending on June 30th, 2023.

Budget Considerations

The financial challenges related to inflation, supply chain delays, rising rent and mortgages, childcare  needs, etc. have been overwhelming. Danbury taxpayers, both residential and business owners, are struggling just to pay their heating and grocery bills. The City used ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funds to “respond, restore, and prepare” in a variety of ways that continue to help us recover from the global pandemic and build a more resilient City government for years to come. The broad purpose of ARPA funds is to enhance the safety and well-being for the City of Danbury.

Our public-school system is set to launch an innovative career pathway-oriented curriculum that will be transformative for our students, and the City will invest the necessary funding to rise to the occasion.In addition, this budget prioritizes Public Safety, Public Health, Education, and Infrastructure. We took a holistic approach at all departments, authorities, and city entities to do our best to fully provide the funding needed.

Collaborating to Overcome Challenges

In my first budget presented last year, we worked together to make strategic and bold investments to address long-term needs of the City, and we will continue to create and support new initiatives to enhance Danbury’s position as a premier city to work, live and raise a family.

Together, we have done an outstanding job rising to the occasion, and we have a real opportunity to continue Danbury’s legacy by taking a holistic approach to addressing our budget and budget priorities.

It is important now more than ever before to remove any silos and to WORK TOGETHER to find the best possible solutions for our residents as we deal with funding challenges. I know we can continue to provide the kind of city services that make our Danbury Community uniquely great and affordable.

To strengthen our funding effort, I am creating an Office of Federal, State and Local Grant Opportunities. This office will be vital to ensuring Danbury has the resources it needs to seek, apply and receive vital funding that would otherwise be left undiscovered. I want to find every penny I can for the City of Danbury.

Commitment to Transformational Education of All Students

After working collaboratively with Danbury Superintendent Kevin Walston and the Danbury Board of Education, I am proposing to fully fund the Board of Education budget request of $150 million.

During my entire tenure as Mayor, my focus has been on education and with the creation of the Academies of Danbury quickly approaching, I believe we need to give the Superintendent the necessary tools he and our children need to succeed. Danbury will fundamentally transform education for our children by creating a wall-to-wall district-wide career pathways curriculum which will set the model for the rest of the State of Connecticut to follow in the future. I look forward to continuing to work with the Danbury Board of Education to make the Academies of Danbury the best it can be for generations to come.

A Continued Focus on Infrastructure

The tremendous work of our City employees has enabled us to focus on the infrastructure of our great City. We are committed to continuing our downtown revitalization efforts, repairing sidewalks and roads, and focusing on the exciting future of our rail and public transportation systems.
This past year, we completed the Plan of Conservation and Development with extensive collaboration and input from City residents, businesses and stakeholders, elected officials, and City staff.

That outreach included hundreds of conversations at events throughout the City, an in-person workshop, a virtual workshop, focus group meetings, interviews, and an online survey. In total, the planning process received input from over one thousand stakeholders. This is the roadmap for our future, and there are significant investments in this budget to make it a reality.

A Model for Public Safety and Public Health

During our budget process, I worked extensively with our Emergency Management, Police Department, Fire Department, and our Health Department to make necessary investments to keep our community safe. With this budget, we will continue to be one of the safest communities in the country and will always support the men and women who protect us.

The Creation of the Office of Federal, State and Local Grant Opportunities

Over the last several years during the Covid-19 Pandemic, the City of Danbury saw an influx of federal funds including the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) The City has strategically allocated ARPA funds to projects and initiatives that will benefit the community for years to come. Our priority was to not create any fiscal cliffs with these funds. This influx of federal funds led to my administration's newly announced initiative of the Office of Federal, State and Local Grant Opportunities which will provide a funding mechanism for our departments, nonprofits and businesses.

Conclusion

This proposed budget was created with the input of Department heads, City employees, constituents, and elected officials to determine the future direction of our City. It creates a road map by investing in our infrastructure, public safety, and education system. It also demonstrates a fiscally responsible budget that works to ease the burden on residents that is felt during a property revaluation. This budget limited the amount of discretionary city operating budget increases, but prepares Danbury for the future via strategic investments.

The major budget drivers continue to be from outside factors including supply chain, inflation, and lack of state funding for unfunded programs, and requirements for the municipality. We will continue to face our challenges head on.

This budget fully funds the Superintendent and Board of Education’s $150 million request, positioning the Academies of Danbury and the Danbury Public School district for success now and into the future for generations to come. The future goal-oriented Office of Federal, State and Local Grant Opportunities will discover funding sources that will be vital for our city.

Our focus remains on the central principles in the City’s Mission Statement to maintain this delicate
balance: To ensure a superior quality of life for [our] citizens by providing the most cost-effective municipal services while preserving the cultural, historical, and natural resources of the City.

I want to again thank all of the residents of the City of Danbury for your support, input and belief in our mission. As Mayor, I am proud and honored to present the Proposed Budget for the Fiscal Year commencing July 1, 2023, and ending on June 30th, 2024.”

 

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Submitted by Danbury, CT

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