Town Funding for Non-Profits and Other Groups Holds Steady in 2011-12 Town Budget

The 20 non-profits and other organizations that received a total of $851,956 in the current fiscal year mostly escaped First Selectman Ken Flatto's budget scalpel unscathed.

Flatto is proposing that the groups receive a total of $851,018 in the 2011-12 fiscal year that begins July 1.

But not all of the groups are due to receive the same amount of funding they did in this fiscal year. Flatto is proposing that the Fairfield Museum and History Center receive an additional $17,500, from $32,500 to $50,000, and that the Southwestern Regional Communications Center receive an extra $1,602, from $49,367 to $50,969. Meanwhile, Grasmere by the Sea, a daycare center on the Post Road for seniors who have less mobility than seniors who attend the Fairfield Senior Center, would receive $20,000 less, from $75,000 in this fiscal year to $55,000 in the upcoming fiscal year. The only other agency to receive a proposed reduction is the Southwestern Connecticut EMS Council, which would see a $40 reduction, from $3,040 in this fiscal year to $3,000 in the 2011-12 fiscal year.

Funding non-profits and other groups through the town budget became a hot topic several months ago for town Board of Finance members, who questioned whether the contributions amounted to "forced charity." The board set up a committee to examine how non-profits and other groups get on the list and drop off the list, and the committee decided last month that "a separate board should be formed to administrate the funds and dictate the protocol for approval to the 501(c)3 charities category."

The committee's minutes from Jan. 6 say the 20 groups should be split into two categories - those that require funding from the town as part of a cost-sharing arrangement with other municipalities and those that are 501(c)3 charities. The committee decided that a separate board should be established to administrate funds and dictate protocol for approval to the charities category in part because "discussions regarding these 501(c)3 charities are very emotional and often have personal ties to elected officials."

But the committee said its recommendations wouldn't take effect until the February 2012 budget review process.

The two largest recipients of funds - Pequot Library and Fairfield Counseling Services - would receive the same amounts next fiscal year: $350,000 and $175,000 respectively. Each had requested an increase in the next fiscal year; Pequot Library had asked for $385,000 and Fairfield Counseling Services had requested $190,000, but Flatto is recommending that the requested increases be denied by town boards.

Pequot Library, which is privately owned but open to the public, had asked for the additional $35,000 due to "soaring energy and healthcare costs," while Fairfield Counseling Services had asked for an additional $15,000 due to "the persistence of job losses and unemployment," which causes its clients to "continue to lack financial resources or sufficient health care insurance to adequately pay for the cost of mental health services."

Other groups denied increases by Flatto include:

* The Discovery Museum, which had sought an increase from $30,000 to $35,000 so it could serve an additional 350 Fairfield students in the 2011-12 school year;

* The Audubon Society, which had asked for a $5,000 increase, from $15,000 to $20,000, so 20 percent of expenses associated with scholarships and providing programs to Fairfield schools and organizations that do not have funding could be covered;

* The Greater Bridgeport Transit Authority, which sought a $5,000 increase, from $30,000 to $35,000, to match a 16.7 percent increase in its pass program. The authority noted that it is replacing 15 buses in its fleet with the latest in emissions technologies, installing 80 new shelters throughout its ridership area, and making improvements to its terminal;

* Sullivan-McKinney Elder Housing, which sought a $5,000 increase, from $5,000 to $10,000, to help pay for a kitchen upgrade not covered by a state grant;

* The Fairfield Arts Council, which sought an increase from $10,000 to $15,000;

* The Kennedy Center, which sought an increase from $7,000 to $10,000 to better support "the unique transportation needs of our individuals with disabilities and special needs," adding that more than 100 Fairfield residents receive such transportation;

* The Pilot House, which requested an increase from $8,000 to $10,000;

* The Center for Women and Families, which requested an increase from $6,100 to $10,000. The CWF recently opened a satellite center in the Fairfield Senior Center and noted that it provided direct services to 263 Fairfield residents a year, with another 1,455 benefiting from prevention and educational services in the past year, such as a teen dating violence program in the public schools. The Center for Women and Families expects an increase in the need and utilization of its services in the 2011-12 fiscal year.

The Fairfield Museum and History Center, whose $17,500 requested increase was granted by Flatto, said the number of Fairfield residents served by the museum had increased ten-fold in five years while town support relative to that growth had "declined considerably." The increase is needed, according to the museum, to assist it in "leveraging greater private support in the coming years and to help defray anticipated increases in program utilization by the community." The museum identifies its annual budget at $850,000.

Groups not mentioned above, which did not request increases and which would receive the same level of funding in the next fiscal year as they do in this fiscal year under Flatto's recommendations, include:

* Regional Youth and Adult Substance Abuse Program: $15,000;

* Greater Bridgeport Regional Planning Agency: $18,053;

* Fairfield Veterans Advisory and Information Services: $3,420;

* Southwest Regional Mental Health Board: $9,476;

* Council of Churches Janus Center: $5,000;

* Mill River Wetland Committee: $5,000.