Harwich Holds First Joint Budget Summit

Select Board · Meeting of August 27, 2026

Harwich held its first joint budget summit, reviewing a $2.2 million FY26 surplus and a forecast showing deficits through fiscal 2031. Town finance official Jen reported revenue of $86 million, 4.4 percent over estimate, while all 105 department appropriations stayed within budget. Officials disclosed a $287,000 wastewater enterprise fund deficit, caused by a prior state filing error, that will be appropriated at the fiscal 2027 Annual Town Meeting to correct it.

The five-year forecast, built on 3 percent flat department increases, projects a $240,000 surplus in fiscal 2027 followed by deficits reaching $4.9 million by fiscal 2031, a cumulative $12.9 million gap. "There's no votes tonight," said Town Administrator Jay. Monomoy school finance representative Michael reported the district spent 99.5 percent of its budget and holds an AA-plus bond rating.

No formal votes were taken beyond a unanimous motion to adjourn.

In the full story:

• FY26 Year-End Financial Review
• The Five-Year Financial Forecast
• FY28 Budget Timeline
• Monomoy Regional School District FY26 Budget Update
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 2,702 words

Source: the Select Board meeting of August 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. It was corrected where it differed.