By Ward Peck
Editor
    Contention over the fiscal year 2008 budget has increased among members of the Cape Elizabeth Town Council even as the actual municipal and school budgets are being drafted. Meeting as the Finance Committee on Monday, council members resumed discussion regarding whether to impose spending growth targets for the budget requests and if so, what those targets should be.
    On the municipal side, Town Manager Michael McGovern laid out several scenarios that would allow the town to operate and provide services under the 2.47 percent spending limit mandated by the state’s “LD 1” property tax relief measure and a pledge by three of seven councilors to limit spending increase to the level of inflation as measured by the federal Consumer Price Index for urban areas (CPI-U). The CPI-U was set at 2.5 percent.
    LD 1 was enacted by the legislature several years ago as a vehicle for the state to increase its share of local education costs and requiring communities to pass the subsidy through to property tax payers. In past years, many communities’ governing bodies have chosen to override the pass through requirement and used the savings generated by LD 1 to fund programs and services. Last year, the Cape Elizabeth Town Council did just that, increasing spending slightly over the LD 1 target level.
    McGovern told councilors if all budget line items were funded at their current levels, contractual raises for unionized employees and recommended raises for non-represented employees would increase spending 3.23 percent. He said he could reach the 2.47 percent target by cutting $60,000 out of the capital improvement project budget. Last year $639,000 was approved for capital improvements. McGovern noted that level represented an under funding of capital improvement projects by $261,000.
    “The CIP budget should be funded at $900,000,” McGovern said.
    McGovern distributed a draft of a proposed $2.25 million capital improvement bond that would allow the town and school department to complete needed and desired capital projects, while allowing the town to achieve its budget targets.
    The bond proposal includes requests for installation of a traffic light at the high school entrance ($210,000), a local match for improvements to the intersection of Route 77, Shore Road and Scott Dyer Road ($100,000), public works truck replacements ($180,000), drainage and sidewalk improvements for the town center ($940,000), funds to preserve the Spurwink Church property ($300,000), a security fence for the new “turf field” ($30,000), Greenbelt improvements ($150,000) and 50 percent of the estimated cost of bleachers for the turf field ($150,000). An additional $168,550 in bond items were requested by the school department to upgrade security and replace a large antique window at the middle school.
    McGovern said that if the bond request is rejected, the two town center intersection improvements and the truck replacements would be need to be funded through the CIP budget this year. Assuming $60,000 is cut from the CIP budget, roughly $89,000 would be left for other projects.
    McGovern told councilors he initiated the request for a town match for the bleacher project. He said bleachers have long been desired for the high school athletic fields, but have never come to fruition. More recently, funds for bleachers were to be raised by the private “Kids Turf” organization, although McGovern noted that fundraising effort has “lost stream.”
    Looking ahead to a possible school consolidation being considered by the legislature, McGovern said, “It is important to do this while we still control the property.”
    Following McGovern’s presentation, Councilors indicated they are comfortable with setting a 2.47 percent spending increase target for the municipal budget.
    Councilors, however, failed to achieve such a consensus on the school side.
    The three councilors who took a pledge to hold spending to the level of inflation–Anne Swift-Kayatta, Mary Ann Lynch and David Backer– indicated they will work to hold the school to a 2.5 percent spending increase.
    Lynch pointed to statistics that show 25 percent of Cape Elizabeth property owners qualify for the “Circuit Breaker” property tax refund program as evidence that not everyone in the town can afford further increases in their property tax bill.
    Backer said the tax burden assessed on Mainers at all levels of government is high and while he cannot control what happens in Augusta, he can influence what happens at the local level.
    “If I can vote to reduce the overall tax burden by a modest amount, I will do so,” Backer said.
    “It’s a dangerous message to send when we resist school consolidation and increase spending over LD1,” Backer added.
    First year councilor Jim Rowe, repeating a campaign pledge to make “difficult decisions,” indicated he would support a target, but said, “I support 2.5 [percent] as a target, but it won’t be the end of the discussion; it will be the beginning.”
    The three remaining councilors– Cynthia Dill, Sara Lennon and Council Chair Paul McKenney– all said they were not in favor of mandating a spending target for the schools.
    Both McKenney and Lennon said they felt several years of restricted spending on the school system has hurt the quality of education in Cape Elizabeth.
    “I will not support a cap on the school side,” Lennon said. “Cheap is expensive.”
    McKenney, noting he no longer has children in the school system, agreed that the recent level of funding for schools has been detrimental and further.
    “Comparing all the statistics, we are not the best school system anymore,” McKenney said. “We are just one in a group.”
    Following the often-heated debate, Lynch, who is chair of the finance committee, was asked what direction the school board should take from the discussion.
    “Tell the school board there is a consensus of four councilors in support of a 2.5 percent [target] for the school.”