We know that COVID-19 has taken dozens of lives and sickened thousands in our community. But is it possible the pandemic also dealt a death blow to Newtown’s longstanding practice of providing qualified voters and property owners the final say in our annual budget process?

Let us take a quick look at our local budget track record as it relates to turnouts: the number of qualified residents who have taken the time to exercise this vital constitutional privilege versus those who could not be bothered.

Going back to 2014, the last year that both of Newtown’s two budget requests passed on the first try (responding to the popular mantra among top elected officials calling for a “one and done” referendum), registrars logged a 19.1% turnout.

In 2015, that number slipped slightly to 18.8%.

The following year, Newtown’s budget vote happened on the same date as the statewide Presidential Primary, propelling voter turnout presumably inspired by the added political consequences to 29%. But many may agree that this response is closer to what we should be seeing for just the budget vote.

That year also marked the start of the wavering but certain deterioration of local taxpayer participation.

In 2017, budget turnout was 19.9%. In 2018 turnout dipped measurably to 15.7% before an uptick the next year to 17%.

With the pandemic raging in the spring of 2020, Newtown’s Legislative Council responded to temporary emergency measures, foregoing public polling and finalizing that fiscal year’s spending plan internally.

Last year’s return to live and absentee voting — providing added flexibility for those voting absentee because of continuing virus and infection concerns — produced an 8.98% turnout.

But the idea that such an anomaly could only be a lingering by-product of COVID fears was dashed on April 26 when less than eight residents (7.77%) out of each 100 qualified to cast budget ballots showed up or made time to file by absentee (with continued pandemic-related flexibility).

This further decline in numbers — apparently mirroring an even greater surge of local taxpayer apathy — was not lost on Newtown’s Democratic Registrar of Voters, who penned a letter on the subject for last week's Newtown Bee.

LeReine Frampton, who is among the community’s longest serving registrars, reminded residents of the expense ($10,000 per session) and extent of human resources required to conduct each annual budget vote — which could be compounded if one or both budget requests fail.

She also outlined various options the community could and should seriously consider as an alternative to seeing 1,474 of the 19,000-plus qualified residents endorsing a nearly $130 million spending package.

Those alternatives include having the Council set the budget with the right to petition to hold a referendum; changing the voting day perhaps to a Saturday; or changing the council’s delivery deadline so the proposal is known to voters at least 22 days before absentees can be mailed.

Any such change would need to be codified in a Charter revision, so there is time to consider these and other options. But in view of the 2021 and 2022 voter turnouts, we echo Frampton’s closing question in her letter: “Is this process working?”

It does not appear so, and that means it is time for Newtown voters to decide whether an annual budget vote still matters.