Southampton Votes to Cut $195,000 From FY2026 Budget on State Order

Town Meeting · Meeting of January 10, 2026

Southampton votes to cut $195,000 from its FY2026 operating budget under state pressure. Town Meeting residents voted Saturday by majority to reduce appropriations set at the May 2026 annual town meeting after the state Division of Local Services required the cut before it would certify the town's new tax rate. Town Administrator Scott Zaback attributed the shortfall primarily to new growth revenue projected to fall below $120,000, against a budgeted $180,000 and a six-year average of $185,000, and an overlay expected to exceed $130,000 against a five-year average of $97,000.

Resident John Lumber of College Highway voted in opposition, warning the cuts were compounding: "I suspect the $57,000 cut to the fire department means we're not getting the second paramedic that three years ago we voted for." A joint Select Board and Finance Committee session was scheduled for Tuesday to address what Lumber described as a roughly $500,000 shortfall heading into FY2027, with a key $175,000 regional dispatch grant set to expire and ARPA funds no longer available.

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Source: the Town Meeting meeting of January 10, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.