WILBRAHAM — Unknown factors are creating complications for Wilbraham when drafting its fiscal year 2026 budget. At the Feb. 10 Select Board meeting, Town Administrator Nick Breault said he and Treasurer/Collector Barbara Hancock reviewed some of those problematic line items.
Breault said Scantic Valley Regional Health Trust, which provides health insurance for Wilbraham, was expected to increase the town’s costs by up to 13.8%. Last year, there was no increase to the health insurance assessment and Breault noted that a placeholder of 5% had been inserted into the draft budget. With a low-end estimate of 7%, Breault said, “It’s a really big swing.” The difference between the two percentages represents up to $300,000, a significant amount to be unknown when creating a budget. Breault said there would be clarification from trust at its next meeting.
The board asked to arrange a meeting with a representative of the Pioneer Valley Transit Authority to discuss the assessment connected to a bus stop in the town, which is also not yet fixed.
Select Board member Marc Ducey added that the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District will also have a higher number in the final budget than the placeholder. He said FY26’s budget was one of the most complicated he had seen in “a decade or more.” The town would need to have “hard conversations” with residents about “what they’re willing to pay for,” he said.
Select Board member Michael Squindo broached the topic of implementing a local option tax, which would essentially serve as a second sales tax for purchases made in town. Originally, Squindo had not been in favor of putting the measure on the warrant for this year’s Town Meeting, but he said it could provide a revenue source that tapped more than just the residents.
Select Board Chair Susan Bunnell said the tax would be an extra 0.25%, which Breault said would equate to $125,000 per year in revenue.
Ducey said that he would like to hear the opinion of business owners in the community, since it would affect the items sold in their establishments. Further, he asked that any funds from the tax go into a dedicated account so the impact can be measured. Breault explained that legally, the funds must go into the general fund, but the revenue could be included in its own line item in the budget.
