The City of Torrington will operate on a $33,483,973 budget for fiscal year 2017-18.
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TORRINGTON – The City of Torrington will operate on a $33,483,973 budget for fiscal year 2017-18.
That annual budget received final approval during the regular meeting of the Torrington City Council Tuesday evening, June 20. Even though there is an 11.25 percent increase over last year, Mayor Mike Varney describes it as. “Spartan.
“It’s a pretty Spartan budget,” Varney said during a telephone interview Wednesday morning. “Two years ago we started to tighten our belts because we didn’t want to lose personnel.”
Varney said expected cuts in state funding and the slowing economy were the driving force behind the budgetary austerity. Adding to the dilemma were reduced funding opportunities the city has relied on for infrastructure projects, including the new water head works.
“Last year the state started making cuts,” Varney said. “If coal and oil don’t come back we haven’t got
a prayer.
“We had several public budget work sessions this spring, and I think that helped,” he said. “The department heads cooperated real well and we tried to make a budget that will work. I think we can live with this budget, but if there are further cuts, the bleeding really starts, and we’ll lose jobs.”