Wellington has remade its entire budget process this year, and the result will likely be fewer services for its relatively pampered residents.

The village is examining all its expenses and ranking them in importance from “must haves” that the village is required to provide to nice but unnecessary services.

With property tax reform looming in the Legislature, those unnecessary services likely won’t make it on the budget this year. Francine Ramaglia, the village’s finance director, expects Wellington will only be able to fund services ranked as level one or level two under the tax cuts. Services ranked either one or two are considered required, either by law or Wellington’s own comprehensive plan.

“If you cut back to level two, it’s a good level of service,” Ramaglia said. “But it’s not a Wellington level of service.” Read more

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