Politics & Government

Bethel Municipal Budget Fails Third Try at Referendum [UPDATED]

Voters deny municipal spending proposal once again by narrow margin.

Bethel voters denied the 2014-15 municipal spending request for a third time Thursday, defeating the $26.8 million proposal by a vote of 1,354-1,318.

The 36-vote margin clears the 0.5 percent theshold for a recount.

Because the town will fail to adopt a budget by the start of the new fiscal year, Tuesday, July 1, the town will revert to the 2013-14 budget on a month-to-month basis until a budget is approved.

The unofficial tally Tuesday night from all five districts and absentee voting:

District 1
Yes: 122
No: 153
Too High: 173
Too Low: 67

District 2
Yes: 317
No: 297
Too High: 378
Too Low: 179

District 3
Yes: 514
No: 474
Too High: 602
Too Low: 262

District 4
Yes: 256
No: 336
Too High: 388
Too Low: 156

District 5
Yes: 71
No: 71
Too High: 91
Too Low: 39

Absentee
Yes: 38
No: 23
Too High: 30
Too Low: 22


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here