A Cheat Sheet for Stafford’s Budget Season
- 4 days ago
- 2 min read
Updated: 4 days ago
Stafford is gearing up for a public hearing regarding the 2026-2027 budget. If you’ve been following along for the past few months, you may already know what to expect. The Board of Education and Board of Selectmen have approved their respective budget proposals, and after they are officially presented at the hearing, the public will have the opportunity to ask questions. The Board of Finance will then discuss the proposals and the feedback before taking action.
Explore the Stafford Public Schools budget proposal in depth.
Explore the Selectmen’s budget proposal in depth.
The public hearing where both budgets will be presented in their entirety is scheduled for April 7 at 6:30 p.m. at the Community & Senior Center at 3 Buckley Highway.
Not interested in the details? Here’s what you need to know.
2026-2027 Stafford Budget Proposal
Board of Selectmen | $13,202,762 |
Debt Service | $3,042,361 |
Stafford Public Library | $614,410 |
Board of Education | $31,938,183 |
Total Expenditures | $48,797,716 |
Less: All Other Revenues | $14,475,077 |
To Be Raised From Taxes | $34,322,639 |
While the total expenditures here represents a 3.18% increase from last year, the amount that actually needs to be raised from taxes is just a .05% increase from 2025-2026, according to a budget document provided by the Town.
At the April 1, 2026, BOS meeting, First Selectman Bill Morrison said the Grand List has increased substantially to almost $1.3 billion. (This is a direct result of the 2025 property reevaluations.)
When you start plugging all the numbers into the Mill Rate equation you get a new proposed Mill Rate of 26.43. This is a precipitous drop, from the current Mill Rate of 38.59. (Again, this is a result of the newly assessed property values.)
Stafford’s 2025-2026 Mill Rate | Proposed Mill Rate for 2026-2027 |
38.59 | 26.43 |
This is a good time to remind everyone that a lower Mill Rate doesn't always mean lower taxes. To learn how your property taxes would be impacted by this new rate, use Stafford Connecticut's Mill Rate Comparison Calculator. Your car taxes will likely change as well, due to the way the State now requires that municipalities calculate the value of automobiles. So, it's also worth checking how that change compares to your residential property taxes.
Not sure how to use the calculator? Here's a how-to video:
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