Beverly Finance Committee Advances $136.5 Million Budget, Defers Equity Funding Vote

BEVERLY -- June 22, 2020, Beverly's finance panel advances a $136.5 million city budget while deferring a racially focused funding fight to Wednesday. The City Council's Committee on Finance and Property voted 3-0 on every line item at its June 22 remote meeting, including a $1,059,808 draw from the city's $14.7 million Stabilization Fund to balance the general fund and a $64.4 million school appropriation. The night's sharpest exchange came when Councilor Estelle Rand moved to cut $200,000 from the $1.4 million road and sidewalk transfer line to seed a racial justice and equity initiative, only to withdraw the motion after Mayor Mike Cahill and City Finance Director John Ailes asked for two days to identify funding spread across multiple budget lines. Rand, who called the proposal "using my legislative power to make a commitment to that funding," agreed to bring a revised motion, potentially between $150,000 and $250,000, at the full City Council special meeting Wednesday at 7 p.m. City Auditor Bryant Perry cautioned that state aid figures remain unknown, with the administration projecting a 17.5 percent cut that could shift materially before fall.