To the Editor:

I am writing in support of the Board of Education budget that is part of the upcoming referendum on April 23. Should the budget be voted rejected, it would mean drastic cuts to an already depleted budget. The original requested budget, a bipartisan agreed upon budget from the BOE, has been cut from 5.6% by the Board of Finance to its current 4.4%. Line item cuts have been painstakingly reviewed at the BOF level. There was nothing else to further cut without adversely affecting the quality of education at our Newtown schools.

In general, Connecticut towns are dealing with higher budgets this year based on contractural obligations with the unions and transportation providers. New Fairfield is at 5.25%, Sherman 5.62%, Oxford 5.65%, Easton 6.36%, Brookfield 6.52%, and Monroe a whopping 7.15%. The increase is not an anomalous to Newtown, it is the cost of maintaining the high level of education that our town is accustomed to providing for our kids and it is an economic reality in our state.

Recently I attended the Legislative Council meeting where members who voted against the current budget insisted on improving the level of education while demanding cuts on the BOE budget. Either they are out of touch with the high costs of education in a post Covid world or in denial and asking for indiscriminate cuts to an already slashed budget. Worst case they are oblivious of the facts because, as one of these nay sayers openly admitted, “I never even opened the binder on the budget.” Never bothered to open the binder yet still calling for cuts. That alone is a subject for a letter to the editor for another day.

My wife and I moved to Newtown thirty one years ago. The town, the community and the high value on education that this town offered and offers, were the prime motivators to move and raise our four kids in this town. We no longer have kids in the system but as we experienced first hand, the value that our kids got from a robust and well supported school system, we and our community should in turn support shoring up that system when circumstances and financial realities call for it.

For our schools and for our kids — Vote Yes on April 23.

Alex Villamil

Sandy Hook

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