New Canaan panel splits on seeking $400,000 more in school cuts

Town Council · Meeting of March 25, 2026

New Canaan Town Council Education Committee splits over seeking $400,000 more in school budget cuts. Members reviewed the Board of Education's roughly $117.18 million request, layered on top of a $1.6 million reduction already recommended by the Board of Finance. They flagged about $12 million in unbudgeted staff costs added between 2021 and 2025, including roughly 18 special education hires and 11 substitutes not in the original budget, plus $125,000 spent on a school-site consultant the council said it was never told about.

One member, Penny, called a prior $150,000 cut "noise in the wind." Chairman Mike Moore had separately asked the district's insurance broker to informally shop rates for its longtime third-party administrator, Sigma, rather than pursue a formal bid process. No formal votes were taken.

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Source: the Town Council meeting of March 25, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

The Full Article

NEW CANAAN — March 25, 2026 — The Town Council Education Committee could not agree Wednesday on whether to ask the school district to find an additional $400,000 in budget reductions, after members raised concerns about roughly $12 million in unbudgeted staff costs added over the past five years.

The committee, which had technical difficulties and missed the opening minutes of its own meeting, spent most of the session reviewing the Board of Education's budget request on top of a $1.6 million reduction already recommended by the Board of Finance. Members disagreed on whether pushing for more cuts would meaningfully affect the district's roughly $117.18 million budget request or simply generate what one member called "noise in the wind."

The Full Story

Committee members said this year's Board of Education budget lacked the kind of high-profile new program that has driven public pushback in past years, making it harder to identify where an additional reduction could come from without affecting classroom staff. One member, identified in the discussion as Penny, argued that a $150,000 reduction imposed the previous year had proven meaningless because the district simply trimmed general expenses rather than eliminating anything specific.

Several members raised concern that student enrollment has fallen by roughly 225 students while staffing has grown. They said the superintendent's office had confirmed that about 30 hires made between 2021 and 2025, including roughly 18 special education positions and 11 substitute teacher positions, were not part of the originally approved budget. Members said the district has also returned an average of $600,000 to $700,000 a year to the town's general fund, money that was collected from taxpayers but not spent as budgeted.

The committee also discussed $125,000 spent on a consultant to evaluate a potential new school site, spending that members said was not included in the prior year's budget and was not disclosed to the Town Council in advance. Members said subsequent public reports found the property could not accommodate a school. "That's another cushion in the budget in addition to the savings that's coming up," one member said of the unbudgeted spending.

Members disagreed sharply on whether to formally request the additional $400,000 cut. One member said the panel should ask the superintendent directly, in public, whether such a reduction would affect classroom quality or force staffing changes. Another said the request amounted to reopening a debate the Board of Finance had already settled at $1.6 million, and that the district's schools were a major reason New Canaan property values, and its comparatively low mill rate, have held up. The committee ultimately agreed to raise the question informally rather than as a unanimous committee recommendation, and to note publicly that members were divided.

The committee also revisited a proposal to competitively bid the district's third-party health insurance administrator, Sigma, which has held the role for 15 years. One member cited Sigma's involvement in lawsuits, including a 2023 case involving Medicare fraud allegations, as reason to solicit informal price comparisons rather than a full request for proposals, which members said could itself be costly. A prior claims audit was cited as having cost $50,000 in 2017. Members said they would ask the district's insurance consultant to gather comparative bids without committing to a formal RFP process.

Separately, members discussed whether the Board of Education is legally required to report or seek approval for staffing headcount, with one member saying an attorney had advised that the obligation is set in statute unless the board has formally delegated it to the superintendent. Members said they wanted an independent legal opinion presented to the full council before taking any position.

"I would not vote on it with clear conscience because it didn't prove anything," Penny said, referring to last year's $150,000 reduction — "$400,000 doesn't prove anything, either."

"I think it's just a matter of sharpening your pencils," another committee member said in response, arguing the district could still find savings without harming programs.

"Could you please shop around and get us some bids?" — Mike Moore, committee chairman, describing his request to the district's insurance broker at a prior meeting.

Why It Matters

The committee's disagreement will shape how the Town Council approaches the Board of Education's roughly $117.18 million budget request in the coming weeks, on top of a $1.6 million cut the Board of Finance has already recommended. Whether the council asks for $400,000 more, roughly $75 per household by one member's estimate, depends on informal feedback the committee plans to seek from the superintendent before its next meeting.

The unbudgeted $125,000 consultant spending and the $12 million in added staff costs since 2021 raise questions about how closely the town tracks Board of Education hiring, an issue that could resurface as the council debates headcount reporting requirements this spring.

Key Motions & Votes

No formal votes taken at this meeting.

Source

Town Of New Canaan: Town Council Education Committee meeting, March 25, 2026