By MARK SARDELLA
WAKEFIELD — With the new year, the municipal budget season has arrived and the the Town Council this week approved the first round of 11 departmental budgets for Fiscal Year 2026, which begins on July 1. All budgets are also scrutinized by the Finance Committee before going before Annual Town Meeting in the spring.
Town Administrator Stephen P. Maio said that the first group of budget requests came in collectively at about 1.6 percent less than last year.
After some brief introductory remarks by Finance Committee chairman Evan Kenney, Assistant Town Administrator/Chief Financial Officer Kevin Gill introduced new Town Accountant Elizabeth Rourke.
Rourke has over 20 years of municipal experience including 11 years with the Town of North Reading and 12 in the City of Somerville. She holds Master’s Degree in Accounting from Suffolk University, a Certificate in Local Government Leadership and Management from Suffolk University and is a Certified Governmental Accountant.
Gill then launched into the budgets, beginning with the Legal Department (Town Counsel) budget.
Gill said that the FY2026 budget request of $205,100 was $1,052 less than last year. Included was a 3 percent salary increase for Town Counsel Thomas Mullen. The professional services line item (used for specialized outside legal services) was reduced by $10,000 based on usage over the last several years.
Town Council chairman Michael McLane wondered if that line item could be further reduced. Mullen said it is hard to predict the need for outside counsel and he was concerned about the possibility of appeals related to the two 40B projects on Nahant Street that were recently denied by the Boar of Appeals.
The Town Council approved the original amount of $205,100.
Gill next presented the Tax Collector’s budget at $327,107, including a recommended increase of $10,473. The increase included $3,473 for negotiated contractual salary increases as well as increased amounts for advertising and postage.
The Town Council approved the budget with no discussion.
After a brief discussion, the board approved the Assessing Department budget at a recommended $271,657. The request included an increase of $6,385, all of which was in personal services for negotiated salary increases.
The Town Clerk’s budget was approved at $270,262, including an increase in the personal services line item of 8,282 for negotiated salary increases.
The Election and Registration budget was decreased by $3,500 and approved by the Town Council at a total of $38,800.
The Election Expense budget was also decreased by $26,450 due to fewer elections scheduled in FY2026. The total amount approved was $13,900.
The Finance Committee budget was approved at a level funded $7,060.
The Conservation Commission budget was increased by $2,300 to cover a 3 percent salary increase for the two conservation agents. The total budget amount approved was $87,468.
The Town Council approved the Planning Board budget at a level funded $10,775.
The Zoning Board of Appeals budget was increased by $700 and approved at $31,000.
The $298,626 Council on Aging budget was approved with an increase of $8,228, which was all in the personal services line item to cover negotiated salary increases.