Town Ballot Items


The Town's elected Selectboard has proposed three Town articles to be voted on by ballot this year, the Town Municipal Services Budget, the Information Technology Reserve Fund, and the  Communications Reserve Fund . You will find additional information below.

BALLOT QUESTIONS

 

ARTICLE 6 - Town Municipal Services Budget

“Shall the voters of the Town of Colchester approve total general fund expenditures of Sixteen Million, Nine Hundred Thirty-Six Thousand, Six Hundred Ninety-Three Dollars ($16,936,693) of which Fourteen Million, Two Hundred Forty-Eight Thousand, Four Hundred Thirty-Nine Dollars ($14,248,439) shall be raised by taxes and Two Million, Six Hundred Eighty-Eight Thousand, Two Hundred Fifty-Four Dollars ($2,688,254) by non-tax revenues for the Fiscal Year July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026?”

  • Estimated to increase the municipal service tax rate by 4.86 %
  • Maintains current level of municipal services and addresses: 1) Additional resource needs in the Assessor’s Office necessitated by the state’s requirement to conduct a town-wide reappraisal, as well as achieving the Selectboard’s goal to reduce costs associated with the mass reappraisal by transitioning to a rolling reappraisal moving forward; 2) Retention of volunteer firefighters by increasing stipends when responding to calls; 3) Recognition of DPW-Highway staff that have gained the skill and ability to operate heavy equipment, creating a growth opportunity within the department, and providing a benefit to the Town by having more than one person able to operate our large equipment when needs arise; 4) Community programming needs within Colchester Burnham Library by transitioning one 35-hour/week library employee to 40-hours/week.
  • Residential Property Value Impact: For a property valued at $300,000, the increase would be $96/year or $1.84/week
  • Summary of the Proposed FY26 Budget
  • Budget Document Page (Budget Presentation, Revenues, Expenses, and Budget by Area of Expenditure)

ARTICLE 7 – Information Technology Reserve Fund

“Shall the voters of the Town of Colchester reauthorize the Selectboard to maintain a reserve fund accumulating annually in the amount of Thirty-Five Thousand Dollars ($35,000) for a period of five years, for the purpose of financing technology replacements and upgrades?”

  • This a reauthorization of the current annual funding and will not increase taxes
  • Supports regular replacement of servers, firewalls, and back-up devices; desktops, laptops, and tablets for staff, elected officials, and volunteer boards; public use and special purpose programs; email systems; mobile terminals for public safety
  • More information

ARTICLE 8 – Communications Reserve Fund

“Shall the voters of the Town of Colchester reauthorize the Selectboard to maintain a reserve fund accumulating annually in the amount of Twenty-Five Thousand, Five Hundred Dollars ($25,500) for a period of five years, for the purpose of financing telephone and radio replacements and upgrades?”

  • This a reauthorization of the current annual funding and will not increase taxes
  • Supports Town-wide phone system, digital phones, base stations and repeaters, for Police, Fire, Rescue, Public Works, and Parks
  • More information 

If you have any questions, please contact Renae Marshall, Deputy Town Manager at rmarshall@colchestervt.gov or by phone at 802-264-5509.