Continuing what is expected be a series of questions posed to the candidates for the Warren Town Council on a weekly basis leading up to the week before the November 3 election, The Times-Gazette contacted Daniel Barlow, James Core, Scott Lial, Bert Rodrigues and Rebecca Schmaeling with another inquiry for the September 30 print edition and for publication at the paper's page on eastbayri.com.

The candidates were once again asked to keep their responses to between 200-300 words for brevity and clarity. The question posed this week pertained to budget matters, which is going to be one of the most significant and immediate items the next council faces.

Some of the candidates have more direct knowledge of local budgetary concerns. For context, it is noted that Core currently sits on the town's budget committee and Lial has contended with related issues while previously serving on the council from 2010-16.

This week's inquiry to the candidates was: With the town’s coffers constrained for any number of reasons, how should the council best approach meeting Warren’s anticipated debt service requirement of $1.3 million for the school district construction bond in next year’s fiscal budget?

Daniel Barlow: As a Warren resident and first-time candidate, I know about our town’s financial constraints but have not had the opportunity to work with the experts on the town budget. The one thing I won't do is take cheap shots from the outside, but Warren has more tools in its toolbox than simply raising taxes when challenges arise.

While there may not be much room in the current budget for cuts, I believe every expenditure and source of revenue should be reviewed to ensure we are getting the services we need to keep the town on track. I look forward to developing innovative ways to fund our immediate financial needs and putting our town on a path to long term financial stability.

I’ve already made recommendations to the current Town Council on ways the town can improve revenue that are moving forward, and if elected I look forward to working with fellow Councilors, the Budget Committee, and Town Manager to find sustainable solutions.

James Core: No one likes to raise taxes. Affordability of current services, paying for the bond, and strengthening long-term finances are all required activities. It will be difficult adjusting an already lean budget. As a community, we should build on the financial progress made in the last two years – but should take a long-view that upholds the values that make our town great. I recommend the following:

1. Begin Budget Formulation Earlier: This is in process. Last month, the Council approved a motion that the Budget Committee should begin assessing options for the next budget. This creates time to do hard analysis to ensure the next set of hearings produces the best possible options for Warren.

2. Strategically Manage Debt Service: Ironically, the debt service schedule may provide relief. We naturally get headroom in the budget by paying off debt. In 2028, payments on existing bonds should drop about $250,000. We should consider using reserves this year to pay off two balances totaling about $180,000 to eliminate payments in 2028 which is going to be a difficult year. If successful, that would address about $400,000 of the problem with a tradeoff that we are dipping into thin reserves. The remaining $900,000 becomes part of the budget tradeoffs.

3. Assess Other Revenue Sources: Tapping other revenue sources is time-consuming and uncertain. Increasing fines through code enforcement and addressing vacant buildings, a focus of the current council, could help. Secondly, and linked to beginning the budget process earlier, I advocate being more assertive with the State to maintain current aid into FY 2028 and open a dialogue on restoring funds stripped this year. Lastly, the Council should assess if tapping into the Town's special purpose revenue funds could help. This will all take time, but it is wise to look at all options.

Scott Lial: Warren finds itself in a very difficult and undesirable financial position in the coming budgetary cycle, for fiscal year 2027-28. While this may sound direct and somewhat uncompromising, there will only be a single path to shouldering the debt service for the school construction bond. The Council will have to rely almost entirely on the annual tax levy to pay for this increase.

Any suggestion to the contrary might reflect some inexperience or naïveté. One might approach the situation with optimism and an eye toward creative revenue outlets to offset the increase. While that might prove possible in some future budget cycle, it unfortunately will not in next year’s. There is simply no easy path to generating those funds, complicated by the depletion of Warren’s general fund due to unanticipated expenses.

The $1.3 million represents a tax levy increase of over 4% for the taxpayers, all on its own. Coupled with the current annual budget required to administer the function of the town (including debt service, contracts, cost increases), which this past year was also around 4%, it will bring the annual increase to somewhere in the vicinity of 8.5-9%. If that sounds daunting, it is. If that seems untenable, it might be.

To be completely transparent, it was this unparalleled increase combined with the uncertainty of the economy and steadily escalating cost of living that prompted me to consider running for Council again.

I do not pretend to have an immediate solution. I do however intend, if elected, to join my Council peers and get serious about finding ways to keep the town’s progression moving forward while also trying to alleviate this financial burden for the taxpayers. I am certain that balancing these will prove to be more difficult than ever before, and the most important role Council plays.

Bert Rodrigues: Warren voters approved the school construction project, and with that decision comes a financial responsibility the town must meet. We have to be realistic about the approximately $1.3 million in anticipated debt service and begin preparing immediately.

My first priority would be to review the budget carefully and look for savings, efficiencies, and other available revenue before asking taxpayers for additional money. That means taking a close look at departmental spending, identifying expenses that can be reduced or delayed, and making sure taxpayer dollars are being used responsibly. I would also want department heads to provide regular expense reports so the council can monitor spending throughout the year, rather than waiting until budget season to identify problems.

At the same time, we must protect essential services, especially public safety and the services residents rely on every day. Making cuts that weaken those services simply to say we avoided a tax increase would not be responsible.

I can't promise that taxes will never have to increase. If the council has exhausted every responsible alternative and additional property-tax revenue is ultimately necessary to meet the town’s debt obligation, then unfortunately that may be what we have to do.

For me, a tax increase should be the very last resort, not the first option. Residents deserve an honest and transparent explanation of what savings were considered, what alternatives were explored, and why the final decision was made.

Rebecca Schmaeling: This is a question that I think about often as I consider what my term on Town Council could look like. I’m aware of Warren’s budgetary constraints, and I support the investment in our school system that our neighbors voted to make.

Unfortunately, our budget is already quite lean. I’ve gone over our expenditures, and I don’t think that $1.3 million can be trimmed, especially without cutting services people rely on or disinvesting in the people that help our town run smoothly. It is likely that the next Town Council will need to raise taxes. This is not something that I take lightly. My husband and I are first-time homeowners, and if taxes go up my family will acutely feel that burden.

As a councilor, I would use my fundraising experience to explore every avenue to raise money in different ways: from private to public support. I would be open to and actively seek creative ideas to bring in new capital, and I would listen to and work with the smart people who devote their time to our Budget Committee, as well as the Town Manager, Planner, and Solicitor.

We are all feeling the pain of rising costs of living, and I promise that if elected, I will work tirelessly to ensure that our town government is focused on improving quality of life without pricing out those of us who are proud to call Warren home.