Multi-Year Budget Advisory Committee

Purpose

The purpose of the Multi-Year Budget Advisory Committee is to advise the Select Board on a multi-year budget forecast. The central deliverable is developing, maintaining, and improving an objective, multi-year model for projecting revenues and expenses that can help the Select Board and department leaders make budget decisions with multi-year implications in mind. The Committee will also provide models to help communicate and project future override asks and/or debt exclusion requests, including the anticipated tax impact, well in advance of the Select Board authorizing a ballot question for such funding. 

Membership

Five members and two Ex-Officio members, as outlined below.

  1. Matt Taylor, Chair of Select Board
  2. Matthew Kraft, School Committee (1 member)
  3. Chris Doyle, Comprehensive Capital Budget Committee (1 member)
  4. Tom Caputo, Warrant Committee (2 members)
  5. Conor McEachern, Warrant Committee
  6. Patrice Garvin, Town Administrator, and/or designee (Ex-Officio)
  7. Dr. Jill Geiser, Superintendent of Schools, and/or designee (Ex-Officio)

Members of the Multi-Year Budget Advisory Committee shall be appointed according to the processes established by their respective constituent committees and serve at the discretion of said committee.

At the written request of the Committee, the Select Board may appoint up to three additional Committee members, who shall be Town residents with relevant financial and strategic budget experience.   The Select Board will give deference to specific applicants recommended by the Committee.  The three resident appointees shall have staggered, three-year terms, such that one resident’s term expires each year.

Areas of Review

  • Multi-year models for strategic budget drivers
  • Models for the multi-year impact of using One-Time Revenue, including Free Cash and the Override Mitigation Fund (OMF)
    1. Models should check adherence to the Comprehensive Financial Management Policies for the Town of Belmont 
    2. Models should forecast the property tax burden on residents of debt exclusions, overrides, changes in the property tax rolls, and tax relief programs.
  • Special multi-year financial projects at the discretion of the Committee or as requested by the Select Board.

Deliverable(s)

  1. Before each October Budget Summit the Multi-Year Budget Advisory Committee will present its multi-year budget model, including revenue and expenditures. 
  2. The committee will present growth estimates for major drivers of the town budget, based on past and current economic data. 
  3. The Committee will also report on its process for developing its models, including all data sources. 


Multi-Year Budget Advisory Committee Modeling Initial Draft for Feedback 09/18/2025

MYBAC Model Draft - Managed Expense Growth Scenario