FinCom picks two for new override panel

Finance Committee · Meeting of October 27, 2026

BRIDGEWATER — The Bridgewater Finance Committee voted unanimously to nominate its chair and member Dr. Bennett to serve on a new seven-member panel studying a possible fiscal 2027 Proposition 2½ override. The chair said the public first needs to understand "how the budget is being spent" before override talk begins; Dr. Bennett cited having "written roughly three papers academically on the topic." The committee also voted 6-0 to accept a $3,500 Old Colony Planning Council grant for the Council on Aging's Bi-Weekly Memory Cafe, and continued the fiscal 2027 tax classification order to its next meeting pending staff analysis. Members separately pressed staff on an unconfirmed "two to three million dollars" budget shortfall figure, asking for a first-quarter comparison against original budget assumptions.

The Town Council hopes to seat the full override panel by the first week of November.

In the full story:

• Minutes Approval and Public Comment
• FY27 Tax Classification: Residential Factor Continued
• Council on Aging Receives $3,500 Memory Cafe Grant
• Finance Committee Sends Two Representatives To New Override Study Committee
• Questions Raised Over FY27 Budget Shortfall Size
• Adjournment
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 1,605 words

Source: the Finance Committee meeting of October 27, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript.