Wilton's $5 Million Surplus Not a 'Windfall’

Alex Ruskewich waited for nearly an hour-and-a-half for public comment in order to address the Board of Selectmen (BoS) and members of the press at last night’s BoS meeting at .

“I think people read the headlines and get the wrong idea,” said Ruskewich.

“The town has a $. There are points in there that people don’t understand. About $1.3 million is already committed in capital expenditures but hasn’t been spent yet. Another portion is insurance and benefits, but because people didn’t make as many claims [this year], it wasn’t as high as it could have been. But I’ve heard that this year and next year it could be higher,” said Ruskewich.

Sandy Dennies, Wilton’s Chief Financial Officer, agreed with Ruskewich—and so did the BoS.

“It reads as a windfall,” said Selectman Richard Dunbow about headlines in the press.

“The board [of education] , wonderful! But that was because $1.5 million of that isn’t claimed. It could flip. We have that all the time,” said First Selectman Bill Brennan, giving an example of unmade insurance claims that can lead to the illusory notion of Wilton making a profit.

Brennan gave another example using the state of Connecticut, saying that while some state departments might have a “surplus,” the state is, in reality, heavily in debt.

However, “Wilton is nowhere near” the financial debt burdens that the state of Connecticut is, said Brennan.

“We are where we should be,” said Ruskewich.

Dennies, who spoke earlier in the evening, had said the exact same thing.

“We’re right on target on the budget and expenditures,” said Dennies, noting that tax revenues at this time last year were almost identical.