Stoneham Override Study Committee Sets Working Cost Baseline Ahead of September 30 Report Deadline

STONEHAM — September 10, 2025 — Stoneham Override Study Committee builds a preliminary department-by-department cost baseline, targeting a September 30 report to the Select Board. Meeting for more than three hours on September 10, the committee reached working consensus — without formal votes — on restoration figures for several departments: approximately $136,000 for the Council on Aging, roughly $232,000 to $247,000 for the public library, $415,000 for police, $366,000 for fire, $128,325 for DPW mechanics, and $1.4 million for shared services costs like health insurance. Town Administrator Dennis Sheehan cautioned repeatedly that one-time funding sources used in the FY26 budget — including a $100,000 free cash transfer to the library and a $1.2 million stabilization fund draw for schools — inflate the apparent baseline and must be accounted for in any sustainable override figure. One member who assembled an independent composite estimate put the total at roughly $9.7 to $9.8 million before school department figures are confirmed; the superintendent is scheduled to present at the committee's September 16 meeting, when the state legislative delegation will also appear. A resident presenting outstanding tax receivables totaling $2,574,271 as of June 30, 2025 warned that a tax increase could worsen collection shortfalls, noting, "This is a vicious circle."