Town Administrator Nate presented the Town of Hubbardston’s proposed fiscal 2026 operating budget and capital improvement plan at a joint Select Board and Finance Committee meeting Monday, outlining a roughly $11.8 million spending plan and warning that rising school costs threaten the town’s long‑term fiscal balance.

Nate said the draft budget remains balanced largely by using free cash, about $144,000 in his package, and that the town will need to use one‑time funds unless revenues grow or services are cut. “This budget is unfortunately balanced by approximately the same amount of free cash as we utilized last year,” he said. He highlighted revenues that support the plan: a tax levy that makes up about 78 percent of revenue, roughly $1.75 million in local receipts (including excise), and state aid based on “House 1,” the governor’s initial FY26 proposal.

The administrator flagged several risks and priorities. He said ambulance billing and a stipend for overnight coverage have driven stronger-than-expected local receipts, and that new permitting and e‑services will be rolled out on a newly launched budget/ transparency website (budget.hubbardstonma.gov). He described a projected five‑year town budget that, under current assumptions, could grow from roughly $6.7 million to $8.7 million by FY2030 and reiterated concerns that school spending, which he estimated could rise 8 percent this year, will outpace the town’s growth under Proposition 2½.

Nate reviewed capital priorities and said the town is considering debt exclusions for two large items: a replacement fire engine (estimated about $1 million) and a municipal operations complex that he estimated at $8.5 million over 40 years if advanced. He explained a potential financing strategy that would use longer USDA or similar facility loans to lower annual costs and possibly bundle vehicle and building borrowing to reduce interest expense. He also described other CIP items under study, including a DPW truck, brush mower replacement, building repairs at 48 Gardner Road and libraries, generator projects, and road and sidewalk design work.

On buildings, Nate reported that MSBA paperwork for an earlier school project has arrived and that the school roof’s debt exclusion payment is currently a flat annual line. He told the boards the town has signed MSBA paperwork and that permanent borrowing for the roof has not yet been finalized. He said staff will continue refining the budget as more firm school numbers are produced; the school budget director had recently changed and the town expected the school’s first published figures in the days after the meeting.

The administrator asked the boards to authorize continued work with a financial adviser and architects to refine debt and capital numbers and said he would return with a second version of the budget and CIP. He emphasized grant pursuit for several capital items and said he would only move toward a debt exclusion after more detailed figures were vetted with the finance committee and select board.

Ending: The Select Board and Finance Committee did not take a formal vote to adopt the budget at the meeting; members asked for follow‑up revenue updates and further CIP numbers before formal endorsement. Nate said he would continue refining the package with staff, the town’s financial adviser and consultants and return with updated figures ahead of annual town meeting and warrant deadlines.