First Selectman Melissa M. Mack called on Governor Malloy to reconsider his most recent proposed budget cuts. The governor announced last week that he would be cutting an additional $19.4 million dollars from municipalities in FY16-17. Those cuts included taking $943,412 from Suffield’s budget. The reduction represents 7.5% of the total dollars awarded in state grants to Suffield and is the fifth largest reduction across the state behind Hartford (0.75% of total state grants), Bridgeport (0.9%), New Haven (0.8%) and Waterbury (0.6%).
In a letter to the Governor, Mack pointed out how disproportionately burdensome the cuts would be on Suffield. “Suffield has approximately 13,000 residents. This means that .3% of the State’s population is bearing nearly 5% of the total proposed cut. This is not shared sacrifice and I would ask that you reconsider.”
Mack called the cuts “virtually impossible to address” as “There simply is not an extra million dollars to which we can turn to absorb this unexpected reduction.”