Somerset Annual Town Meeting Approves $76 Million Budget, Bans Crypto ATMs

SOMERSET — May 30, 2026 — Somerset Annual Town Meeting approves $76 million FY2027 budget and bans cryptocurrency ATM kiosks. The meeting, held May 30 at Somerset-Berkeley Regional High School with 220 registered voters and presided over by first-time Moderator Kyle Neves, approved a general government appropriation of $32,966,990 and a school department appropriation of $26,889,305, both raised from taxation, for a total operating budget increase of 3.1 percent. Town Administrator Mark Iolucci projected an average homeowner tax increase of approximately $250, based on an estimated average residential assessed value of $505,000. The sharpest floor debate arose when Sergeant Matthew Lima, president of the Somerset Police Superior Officers Union, read a letter warning that a $40,000 cut to police overtime would threaten community programs and SEMLEC task force access; a motion to restore the funds from taxation passed 126 to 93, but the underlying appropriation then failed. The meeting also approved $3.5 million for wastewater plant design services and indefinitely postponed two citizens' petitions seeking an EPA permit extension and a public forum on competing treatment plans, after Water and Sewer Commission Chairman Joe Cataret said keeping the local plant would save ratepayers nearly $40 million over 25 years versus regionalization with Fall River. A zoning reclassification for a former gas station at 266 Slades Ferry Boulevard passed 98 to 7, and a new bylaw banning cryptocurrency ATM kiosks passed unanimously after Selectman Paul Costa reported police records show Somerset residents have lost more than $142,000 to crypto kiosk scams.