Acushnet Finance Committee reviews FY27 budgets, defers votes to February 18

ACUSHNET -- February 5, 2026, Acushnet Finance Committee opens FY27 budget review under pressure from rising health insurance costs. Town Administrator Jamie Kelly walked the committee through level-funded preliminary budgets for more than a dozen departments at the February 5 meeting, warning that health insurance premiums could rise as much as 20 percent, an increase he estimated at roughly $400,000, with final figures expected by the March 4 session. Kelly also flagged likely increases in the Police Department, tied to potential officer departures to the State Police, and in the Department of Public Works, which is preparing its first competitive bid for trash-hauling contracts in five years. A proposed shared health-agent arrangement with the town of Rochester remains in preliminary discussions, with two budget scenarios, full-time and shared, presented for committee review. Several departments, including Assessors, Planning, and Council on Aging, were absent and are scheduled to present February 18; Planning's longstanding request for a part-time clerk remains unfunded pending Board of Selectmen direction.