Budget gaps to be filled statewide

Date: 4/6/2010

April 7, 2010.

By Katelyn Gendron

Reminder Assistant Editor



GREATER SPRINGFIELD -- A budgetary gap in every municipal budget will be filled shortly when the state reimburses the $7.2 million it cost cities and towns to conduct the Jan. 19 special election.

Approximately $83,000 will be returned to Agawam, Southwick, Westfield and West Springfield for the election in which Scott Brown was selected to fill the late Sen. Edward Kennedy's seat in Congress. The State House of Representatives passed an amendment to the supplemental budget 156 - 1 on March 24, which called for the reimbursement.

The State Senate must pass their own version of the appropriations bill, which must include the aforementioned amendment before Gov. Deval Patrick can endorse the allocations to each municipality.

"I am happy that the members of the House voted in a bipartisan fashion to cover the costs for the January special election," Westfield State Rep. Donald Humason Jr. said. "From the beginning, Republican legislators have been saying the election was an unfunded mandate on our cash-strapped cities and towns.

"I was delighted to be able to call the Westfield City Clerk to let her know this amendment was approved and the supplemental budget passed in the House," he continued.

Agawam City Clerk Richard Theroux agreed with Humason that the cost could have been avoided. The special election yielded a price tag of about $17,000 in Agawam.

"It's unfortunate that the legislators didn't look at the calendar and would have had the [special] election with the governor's race [this November]," Theroux said. "For the sake of waiting a few more months . this $2.7 million could've been avoided."

West Springfield Town Clerk Diane Foley explained she has received confirmation the state plans to reimburse her department the $26,650 it took to run the election. She added that figure covers the cost of staffing, overtime for registering voters, memory cards, property rentals, police and other expenses.

Southwick Town Clerk, Treasurer and Collector Michelle Hill said she too received notification from state officials that "payment was forthcoming." The debt incurred totals roughly $10,000.