The following is a snapshot of the "real spending in Article 6 and its companion articles 7, 8, 10, 11 and 12. Not including Article 7, the spending all adds up to $2.2 million in deficit spending financed off budget by stealing money from the emergency Stabilization Fund and using cash squirreled away from overcharges in prior years.

Article 6, the “Operating Budget,” is just part of the story. The rest of the operating budget is scattered among Articles 7, 8, 10, 11 and 12. What the Town Administration wants to spend in excess of current revenues for FY10 (the property tax levy and expected other revenues) is deficit spending of more than $2 million. Reserve Funds and so-called Free Cash which is left over from prior years (and can be added to Reserve Funds) are being used off-budget to pay for town overspending. This is all taxpayer money, whether collected this year, next year or last.

Exclusive of water-related charges, this is the true operating budget spending situation:

$32.400 million Article 6 - the stated spending plan for operations
.200 million Article 7 - COLAs for non-school employees in zero inflation
.275 million Article 8 – overtime and other operational items
1.500 million Article 10 – mostly maintenance items normally in operations
.280 million Article 11 – if not capital, belong in operations spending
.050 million Article 12 – if not capital, belong in operations
$34.705 million Total “real” non-water spending

These are the off-budget sources of funding the deficit spending for FY10:

Article 6 $ .072 million Free cash to balance operations spending
Article 8 .275 million Stabilization Fund
Article 10 1.500 million Free cash
Article 11 .280 million Stabilization Fund, Allowance for Abatements Fund
Article 12 .050 million Stabilization Fund
$2.177 million Total deficit in current revenues

Ordinarily, Capital Exclusions would have been sought for some of the capital spending, but by using the Stabilization and Abatement Funds and free cash taxpayer override votes were avoided, which in all likelihood would have been defeated. Article 12 spending could easily have been included in Article 6 as a priority item for summer tourism. Article 11 spending could have been a priority in use of free cash. Article 8 items are ordinary operating items and should be included in Article 6 if considered priorities.

IF YOU WANT TO STOP CHATHAM’S EXTRAVAGANT SPENDING, VOTE “NO” ON ARTICES 6, 7, 8, 10, 11 AND 12 TO SEND THE BUDGET BACK TO THE SCHOOL COMMITTEE AND SELECTMEN FOR PRIORITIZING AND DOWNSIZING FOR RETURN TO A RECESSED TOWN MEETING JUNE 15TH.