Mayor presents $281M FY25 City Budget to Council

Council Budget Subcommittee Accepts School Dept. Budget

By Neil Zolot

EVERETT – “The proposed Fiscal 2025 budget totals $281,892,702, a 5% increase over the Fiscal 2024 adjusted budget, while our fixed costs, which include debt service, pension costs and health insurance, have increased by 5.3%,” Mayor Carlo DeMaria wrote in an introduction to the budget book given to City Council members Thursday, May 16. “The needs of our residents are what inform all the budget decisions we make. As elected officials, we are entrusted by the families and businesses in our community with making the best decisions we can on how to spend City revenue.”

In the introduction, the Mayor expresses feelings the City has a “fiduciary responsibility to decide how to invest the financial resources available to us in ways that will benefit our community. The lingering pandemic has impacted the pace of our economic recovery and we need to be both optimistic and realistic about the rate of that recovery.”

He also writes the budget “continues to invest in our physical infrastructure, public safety resources and the fixed costs that come with being an employer. It also includes increases to the City’s contribution level to our schools, as well as our police and fire departments and recommended investments to support our youth, including an expanded focus on increasing the support we provide them in the area of workforce development and readiness. We also are expanding investment in our diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.”

The Mayor’s current budget proposal is an increase of approximately $13.2 million over $268.6 million in Fiscal 2024. Setting aside schools and fixed costs, city departments average an increase over last year’s budget of 6.2%. “With increases in costs, the Mayor is doing what he can to maintain level services,” Chief of Staff Erin Deveney told the Everett Advocate in a phone interview. “There are obligations we have to fulfill. The greatest fixed cost is employee health insurance and public utility costs. They’re not discretionary. We don’t get to negotiate those.”

“We are facing increases in fixed costs as well,” Everett Public Schools Supt. William Hart said while addressing a City Council Budget Subcommittee of the Whole Tuesday, May 21.

Department requests and the Mayor’s recommendation for health insurance is $28,402,176, up from $25,761,748 in Fiscal 2024. That’s the vast majority of department requests and the Mayor’s recommendation for overall employee benefits of $28,520,976, up from $25,877,748 in Fiscal 2024. Total fixed costs for all city departments and the School Department are proposed at $66,551,995, up from $64,098,685 in Fiscal 2024.

The School Department half of the budget is $135,307,416, up 5.21% from $128,612,364 in Fiscal 2024. Water and Sewer Enterprise Funds comprise another $22,493,627.

In the budget, some items are accounted for in multiple line items. For instance, fixed costs are calculated separately and woven into department budgets. The overall budget for city departments, other than the schools and Enterprise Funds, is $80,033,291. Within that $45,297,464 is for Public Safety; $16,510,497 for City Services; $10,386,663 for General Government; $5,183,481 for Human Services and $2,655,186 for Libraries and Recreation.

A deeper breakdown includes the Executive Office of the Mayor’s overall budget request and the Mayor’s recommendation of $1,053,074, up from $1,031,598 in Fiscal 2024, including request and recommendation of $225,000 for the Mayor’s salary up from $208,177; request and recommendation of $158,451 for Deveney, up from $153,836 and request and recommendation of $96,542 for Executive Manager/Scheduler Doloris Lattanzi, up from $93,730;

The City Council overall budget request is $580,980, up from $587,075 in Fiscal 2024, with lower recommendation from the Mayor of $578,061.

Within that is the budget request and Mayor’s recommendation for salaries of $126,439, up from $122,267 in Fiscal 2024 and request of $362,141 for stipends for Councillors, up from $353,468 in Fiscal 2024, with lower recommendation from Mayor of $359,222;

For City Council Legislative Aide Michael Mangan, the request and Mayor’s recommendation is $63,872, up from $62,012 in Fiscal 2024 and the request and Mayor’s recommendation is for Research Specialist David Flood is $62,063, up from $60,255 in Fiscal 2024.

The Auditor’s Office overall budget request is $868,612 and the Mayor’s lower recommendation is $852,512, up from $854,888 in Fiscal 2024.

Within that, $183,687 is the budget request and Mayor’s recommendation for Auditor Eric Demas of $183,687, up from $178,337 in Fiscal 2024.

The Police Department overall budget request is $20,476,310 and the Mayor’s lower recommendation is $20,255,992, up from $19,068,452 8 in Fiscal 2024, including $15,587,231 request for salaries and the Mayor’s lower recommendation for $15,402,334, up from $14,207,536 in Fiscal 2024.

The Fire Department overall budget request is $19,124,090 and the Mayor’s lower recommendation is $17,952,117, up from $15,958,998 in Fiscal 2024, including $10,911,556 request for salaries and the Mayor’s lower recommendation for $10,131,773, up from $9,641,712 in Fiscal 2024.

The City Solicitor’s Office overall budget request is $783,039 and the Mayor’s lower recommendation is $647,559, down from $972,973 in Fiscal 2024.

Within that are the request and Mayor’s recommendation of $160,526 for City Solicitor Colleen Mejia, up from $144,200 in Fiscal 2024; the request and Mayor’s recommendation for $127,308 for Assistant Solicitor Keith Slattery, up from $123,600 in Fiscal 2024 and the $120,000 request for unfilled Assistant Solicitor for Labor and Employment and Mayor’s recommendation of $0, down from $95,484 in Fiscal 2024. Presumably this will be funded of the position is filled;

The Planning Department overall budget request is $937,934 and the Mayor’s lower recommendation is $849,443 down from $941,746 in Fiscal 2024, including $50,266 request and Mayor’s recommendation for Director of Planning and Development Matt Lattanzi, down from $61,002 in Fiscal 2024. Lattanzi will earn $125,664, up from $122,004 in Fiscal 2024. The lower budget item from City funds is because a grant to supplement his salary is rising from $61,002 to $75,398.

The Transportation Department overall request is $625,374 and the Mayor’s lower recommendation is $481,253, down from $558,802 in Fiscal 2024, including a $120,202 budget request and Mayor’s recommendation for Transportation Planner Jay Monty, up from $116,702 in Fiscal 2024.

The City Clerk’s Office overall request of $488,623 and Mayor’s lower recommendation of $469,123, down from $490,476 in Fiscal 2024, including the request and Mayor’s recommendation of $135,920 for City Clerk Sergio Cornelio, up from $131,215 in Fiscal 2024.

In addition, the Library Department overall budget request is $1,588,659 and the Mayor’s lower recommendation is $1,538,098, up from $1,398,386 in Fiscal 2024, including the request and Mayor’s recommendation of $100,534 for Library Director Ken Sheehan, up from $97,606 in Fiscal 2024.

Ward 3 Councillor Anthony DiPierro said he is still studying the budget. “We need to be responsible while keeping the level of services we expect,” he said. “The administration and the Council both believe our residents deserve the level of service we’ve provided.”

Councillor At-Large Katy Rogers said, as a new member, she was relying on her colleagues for guidance, but hadn’t heard anything major concerns voiced.

“I feel there’s a lot of waste,” Councillor At-Large Guerline Alcy Jabouin said of her perusal of the budget. “Everett is a majority minority city and the budget doesn’t represent the City. I see high salaries for people that don’t live here to spend money and help the local economy.” Jabouin did not cite any examples in her remarks.

The Council approved the School Department budget at the meeting without much objection. “What we submitted was pretty clean,” Hart feels.

“Their budget increase is tracking with the increase in the school population,” Council President Robert Van Campen said. “The increase isn’t unreasonable.”

DiPierro asked Hart if the total will cover the Fiscal Year or if additional appropriations might be needed.

“I hope not and it wouldn’t be significant,” Hart answered. “I will do my best to have any additional appropriation have the least financial impact while not affecting education.”

Alcy Jabouin regrets the School Department budget doesn’t address overcrowding. “Whether we like it or not we need space,” she said. “We’re squeezed out. It doesn’t make much sense the issue wasn’t part of the budget.”

Hart answered the issue predates the budget, which is not designed to address it, but that he will present a plan over the summer to address the matter.