Mayor, finance director oppose approach, decisions in speeches

By Tara Fischer

Staff Writer

(April 30, 2026) The Berlin Town Council proposed cutting approximately $389,000 from its proposed budget for next year to help cure a revenue shortfall of roughly $400,000 against expenses and to avoid a tax increase.

At Monday night’s meeting of the Berlin mayor and council, the group reviewed the proposed operating budget, considering items that could be eliminated to address a spending plan that would be $408,000 more than revenue projected for FY27.

Items considered for removal include replacement vehicles, playground work, an additional cost-of-living adjustment, a Independence Day celebration, and a planning legal consultant.

Berlin Mayor Zack Tyndall maintained that despite public chatter, the town is not operating in a deficit. Berlin is required to adopt a balanced budget — expenditures must equal revenues — before the fiscal year begins on July 1. At the time of Monday’s meeting, the draft budget reflected more than $400,000 in costs exceeding expected income.

“I just want to be clear, we’re not operating in a deficit,” Tyndall said. “What happens is the town adopts a balanced budget…There is no deficit at the start of the year. On a rolling basis, with our finance team, the town administrator, me, and the council, we review those expenditures to make sure our budget is in line with our revenues and can keep pace…So, with that, what we are looking at is the cost of things and services the town provides, and all the activities we do for the community; those are projected to come in higher than our revenues. This is not uncommon.”

To address the gap, the Berlin Town Council whittled away at the financial plan, with cuts including $245,000 from public works for vehicles, $18,000 from a proposed half-percent cost-of-living (COLA) increase for town staff in addition to the 2% included in the budget, $45,000 for an economic development Ford Maverick, $20,000 for a new playground climber, $11,900 for fireworks, and $50,000 for the planning legal consultant.

Town workers still will receive a step increase (2.5%) and a 2% COLA under the current budget plan.

From public works, the council is looking to cut a CAT skid loader for $20,000, a Ford F550 for $115,000, a Ford F250 to replace an aging F150 for $65,000, a salt-and-brine attachment for $25,000, and a zero-turn mower for $20,000.

Town officials added that they would also like to see the elimination of emergency preparedness radios at $10,500 for the police department. Tyndall, however, was hesitant to do away with the devices. Instead, the $10,500 will likely be used as a contingency in the budget, and if it’s not used, will be returned to the radios.

Council members also provided justification for the proposed cuts. Councilwoman Shaneka Nichols, for instance, said that for the vehicles, she would like to “slash them all.”

“I think we cut any additional because with the 80 employees and 55 vehicles, I don’t think we need any right now…when your boot straps are tight at home, you make cuts, when your boot straps are tight in the town that you’re running, you have to make cuts…I remember my mother always saying, ‘before you buy a new car, if you can’t handle your debts and bills, then you drive that car until the wheels fall off.’ And I know that we’ve been in that place many times with vehicles in the past…I don’t think right now with the budget that we’re in and the state of the economy and world right now, I think we need to pause right now on vehicles.”

Town of Berlin Finance Director Natalie Saleh added that the budgeted trucks are to replace aging vehicles. Nichols, however, maintained that with the shortfall, FY27 is not the time to obtain any costly cars.

Additionally, Councilman Jack Orris would like to see $50,000 from the budget removed for the town’s planning legal consultant. The council supported the move.

Tyndall cautioned against this action. He said the move could have financial and legal repercussions for the municipality.

“Some of [the cuts] I think we need to evaluate together, like the direction we want to go in, particularly for the planning department,” he said. “I see we cut the legal fees, which is fine. I hear the group. But we also need to make sure we have a plan for addressing that, because we’ve had years without legal support in the planning office…We enacted a contract to be able to have those services take place in the planning office and in many respects it has saved the Town of Berlin substantial costs associated with legal challenges that may have arisen from previous decisions…I understand there are votes to pull that but I think that is a poor, short-sighted decision by this body.”

The July 3 fireworks were also discussed as a potential cut, getting the deficit down to just under $50,000. The $50,000 includes about $30,000 in operating increases for the Berlin Fire Company.

At Monday’s meeting, Tyndall introduced an increased tax rate at 84 cents per $100 of assessed value. This is a penny and a quarter of a penny more than the town’s current tax rate of $0.8275 per $100 of assessed value, and would generate $5.3 million in revenue for the town, or an increase of about $80,000.

The mayor added that this rate hike could be lowered to a penny due to the cuts debated this week. An additional penny on the tax rate would yield $64,000 more than current tax projections.

Council members Nichols, Steve Green, Jay Knerr, and Orris said they were against any tax rate increase at this time and would like to see the current rate retained for the third consecutive year.

As she does each year, Saleh argued for a modest increase would be financially responsible.

“I have advocated for an incremental tax increase every single year,” she said. “…Cutting the projects, deleting the capital, not replacing the vehicles that are old and dilapidated … we are repeating the histories of the past. We have had many years without a rate increase, and we will jump high, damaging households with the payments. A penny and a quarter [of a penny] is $60 for the year. That is significant for some, but if you divide it into 12 months … it is not financially sustainable to delay projects.”

A public hearing on the proposed tax rate will be held on May 11 during the mayor and council meeting at the Berlin Library.

The first reading of the FY27 budget is set for May 26, and a public hearing on the budget and adoption by the council is scheduled for June 8.