Select Board recap: July 28, 2026
(6-minute read)
For residents looking to stay up to date on key town matters, this recap highlights major takeaways from the Select Board meeting held on Tuesday, July 28, 2026.
Watch the full meeting here on RCTV’s Youtube page.
Review the full Select Board packet.
Key takeaways
The Select Board voted 4-1 to place a single $6.5M operational override on the November 3 ballot. The override, paired with $3M to $3.3M in free cash, is meant to close a structural deficit projected at $6.475M for FY28.
Three School Committee members and two Finance Committee members asked the board to put two tiers on the ballot so residents could choose whether to fully address the structural deficit. The board declined and voted for a single question instead.
Town Manager Jayne Wellman said that without an override, Reading would face service cuts, including at least $900,000 from the School Department and the layoff of 67 employees across the town and schools.
A budget years in the making
Town Manager Jayne Wellman opened by walking the board through how Reading arrived at Tuesday’s decision. She said town staff, including Chief Financial Officer Sharon Angstrom and Human Resources Director Sean Donahue, have been building the FY28 budget since April, presenting to the Select Board at its early May retreat during Town Meeting and to the Finance and School Committee across meetings in May and June.
Reading faces a structural deficit of $6.475M in FY28, a gap Wellman said will grow in FY29. Town staff recommended a $6.5M override for the November ballot, paired with $3M to $3.3M in free cash. The Finance Committee recommended a higher tier at $9.8M that would cover the deficit without relying on free cash, down from the $11M figure Wellman presented at the July 22 Select Board meeting.
Wellman described the FY28 budget as level service with no extras, noting the town budget has been level funded for the last four to five years with conservative growth. She said the $6.5M option may be more palatable to voters and could last three to five years, though the town would still need to address the structural deficit over time. Wellman also proposed a policy change so that free cash spending would not exceed what the town spends on capital, which for FY28 stands at $3.989M.
If no override passes, Wellman said, the town would need to cut services, including at least $900,000 from the School Department, and lay off at least 67 employees across the town and schools.
Where the board stood
Chair Melissa Murphy opened a straw poll to gauge whether members favored one number or two, and whether they wanted to phase in the increase. Murphy, Sal Bamante, and Karen Herrick supported a single question, while Vice Chair Karen Rose-Gillis and Chris Haley favored two options. Most members expressed interest in a phased approach.
Bramante said he had spoken with many residents about what would be palatable and pass on a first attempt, and preferred using free cash to ease the burden on taxpayers already facing new costs from the Killam School and Reading Center for Active Living (ReCAL) projects. Herrick asked for a minimal option, stressing the importance of protecting classrooms and staff, and said she would be heartbroken to see full-day kindergarten tuition return. Haley said he could support two options at $5M and $6.5M to get more voters to pass something, but not $9.8M, pointing to OPEB funding he expects to free up in FY32 [Haley said OPEB, but the liability projected to free up funds in FY32 is the town’s pension liability, not OPEB obligation].
Rose-Gillis pushed back, arguing that $5M would not be enough and that a two-option ballot should include $6.5M on the low end and $9.8M at the high end. She said the town needs to move away from spending free cash because it is not regenerating quickly enough, and that a single option does not move Reading forward without moving it backward. Murphy said $6.5M was a figure she could support because it addressed the structural deficit, but she did not think multiple options were a good approach, adding that disagreement is not disrespect.
Committee members call for two tiers
During public comment, several speakers urged the board to give voters more than one choice. School Committee Chair Shawn Brandt said a $6.5M override would still leave the town in a hole and would not address the underlying structural deficit. He said it was disappointing that residents would not have the option to weigh in on that larger option.
School Committee member Erin Gaffen said she was frustrated, telling the board it appeared to be assuming a majority of voters would accept cuts to personnel and services rather than giving them a chance to understand the town’s position and make an informed choice. School Committee member Tom Wise argued that options allow for a range of scenarios, from worst case to best case, and that a lack of optionality is not strategic. He noted the six elected and nine appointed officials who worked through the budget shared the same concerns about pricing residents out.
Finance Committee Chair Marianne McLaughlin-Downing, speaking as a resident, said the board has little time to educate voters and that multiple options would help them choose. Finance Committee member Ed Ross echoed the sentiments, saying he did not think the board was giving voters enough credit to digest more than one option.
Even with those calls, the board’s majority held a single number when the motion came to the floor.
The vote
Before the vote, Haley pressed for a commitment from the board and Wellman to draw down free cash to $3M or under. Herrick and others said they favored using less free cash going forward and pointed to conversations with the state Division of Local Services on best practices. Murphy said she would like to bring the phasing approach back as a future agenda item and stressed the need to be transparent with residents about what is being communicated.
The board then voted 4-1 to place a single $6.5M operational override on the November 3 ballot, with Rose-Gillis casting the lone no vote. Rose-Gillis voted no, expecting she would then be able to move to add a second tier, but the board adjourned instead.
Residents looking to learn more about the override and ways to engage this fall can review the town’s resources using the links below.
Watch the July 28, 2026 Select Board Meeting on the RCTV Youtube page.
