Dartmouth Finance Committee Recommends $113 Million FY27 Budget, Rejects Two Citizen Petitions

DARTMOUTH — April 30, 2026 — Dartmouth's Finance Committee voted unanimously to recommend a $113,389,515 fiscal year 2027 general fund budget and cleared more than 20 warrant articles at its April 30 meeting. The budget, which includes a 4.5 percent increase for the schools, advances to the annual town meeting set for June 2, 2026. Town Administrator Cody Andrade said ongoing contract negotiations are buffered within the figure, with the Employee Stabilization Fund available for any above-budget settlement. The committee voted 7-0 against recommending a citizen petition to extend the sewer system on Allen Street — Article 28 — after Andrade explained it lacked a legal funding source and failed to follow the required betterment process. A second petition to establish a Police Station Reuse Committee, Article 29, failed 0-7 on grounds that it illegally assigned RFP authority to the proposed committee in violation of MGL Chapter 30B; a revised version, Article 30, remains under Town Counsel review. The committee also deferred a vote on a proposed cryptocurrency ATM ban after two members said they were not comfortable voting without the final bylaw text in hand.