2021-22 Monroe Budget Approved By Residents

MONROE, CT — Monroe voters Tuesday approved the 2021-22 town budget at $93.05 million, which carries a 2.48 percent increase that will bring the mill rate to 36.36 mills.

The unofficial vote totals were 917 in favor, or 53 percent of the more than 1,700 people who voted, and 826 against.

Education spending, which makes up the lion's share of the budget, is slated to increase by more than 5 percent to $61.52 million, while municipal spending will increase just over 2 percent to $29.8 million.

"My thanks to the Monroe voters and for the hard work and collaboration of our department heads and our elected officials on Board of Education, Town Council, and Board of Finance during this budget process," said First Selectman Ken Kellogg in a statement.

Prior to Tuesday's budget referendum, Kellogg touted that the fact that over the past four years, including the upcoming planned expenditure, the mill rate, or tax rate, had increased less than half a percentage point.

"I continue to implement deliberate practices to minimize the tax burden through conservative spending and fostering growth in our grand list," Kellogg wrote in his budget referendum message. "Since my budget proposal, I worked in collaboration with our Town Council and Board of Finance to identify and incorporate further efforts to lower impacts to taxpayers."

The 2021-22 budget will take effect on July 1. To view the expenditure, click here.