Easton Finance Committee unanimously backs $1.15 million supplemental spending package

EASTON — May 12, 2026 — Easton Finance Committee unanimously recommends $1.15 million in supplemental FY2026 spending ahead of Town Meeting. The committee voted 8-0 Tuesday to advance Article 5, which covers a $486,133 snow and ice overrun funded by free cash, a $620,000 solid waste and recycling enterprise fund shortfall tied to the town's discontinued curbside trash program, and $39,593 in additional sewer enterprise fund debt service — both enterprise items drawn from fund surplus rather than general fund resources. Finance Director Wendy clarified that despite the $620,000 figure, the true structural gap in the trash program is closer to $200,000 once timing differences and future lien collections are accounted for, with roughly $198,000 in fiscal 2025 receipts already sitting in enterprise surplus. The committee was told the spending is not discretionary: "It's not discretionary — we have to pay one way or another." A possible additional reserve fund transfer for town clerk election expenses, amount not yet determined, may come before the committee as soon as the night of Town Meeting.