Town reserves
Free cash and stabilization
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The town keeps two kinds of reserve: free cash, $3,354,370 as of 1 July 2025, and nine stabilization accounts holding $9,061,421. Only the general fund’s $3,147,179 may be spent on anything lawful.
- spendable on anything lawful$3,147,179
- restricted to the purpose its article named$5,914,242
Free cash
Stabilization funds
What is held
$3,354,370
free cash certified as of 1 July 2025
$9,061,421
in nine stabilization accounts, 1 July 2025
$3,147,179
of it in the general fund, any lawful use
$5,914,242
held for stated purposes (our split)
our estimate
Comes from, goes to
66.1%
of it appropriated and not spent
$655,424
free cash into capital, FY2026
15
of 20 deposits naming free cash
2
of the school gap the general fund covers (ours)
our estimate
Not settled
—
the state’s own free cash guideline
not published
—
which departments left free cash unspent
not published
—
every withdrawal from the funds, by year
not published
Free cash
What is held
$3,354,370
free cash certified as of 1 July 2025
Comes from, goes to
66.1%
of it appropriated and not spent
$655,424
free cash into capital, FY2026
Not settled
—
the state’s own free cash guideline
not published
—
which departments left free cash unspent
not published
Stabilization funds
What is held
$9,061,421
in nine stabilization accounts, 1 July 2025
$3,147,179
of it in the general fund, any lawful use
$5,914,242
held for stated purposes (our split)
our estimate
Comes from, goes to
15
of 20 deposits naming free cash
2
of the school gap the general fund covers (ours)
our estimate
Not settled
—
every withdrawal from the funds, by year
not published
What it adds up to
- 1
Free cash reached a record $3,354,370 in July 2025; 66.1% of it was money appropriated and not spent.
- 2
Of $9,061,421 in stabilization accounts, only the general fund’s $3,147,179 may go to any lawful use.
- 3
Free cash is also the capital plan’s money: $655,424 of the FY2026 programme.
- 4
15 of 20 deposits into the two town stabilization funds name free cash as their source.
- 5
Spent on the school gap, the general fund covers FY2028 and FY2029, by our arithmetic.
- 6
The state’s guideline itself, and which departments left money unspent, are not published here.
Free cash
Free cash balance
The state certified $3,354,370 of free cash as of 1 July 2025, the most in any year the Town’s records list.
Free cash guideline
Free cash is 6.65% of the budget, inside the 5% to 7% the Town cites; 7 of the last 10 years fell short.
Free cash sources
Two thirds of the free cash identified in July 2025, $2,457,761, was money appropriated and not spent.
Free cash and capital
Free cash paid $655,424 of the $1,225,000 FY2026 capital programme; FY2027 plans $991,627 of $1,830,203.
Free cash for schools
Kept above the 5% floor, $794,872 could be redirected, $135,401 short of the FY2028 gap (our arithmetic).
Stabilization funds
Stabilization fund balances
The town’s ledger files $9,061,421 under its nine stabilization accounts, at the start of FY2026.
General stabilization fund
The general fund’s cash rose every year from FY2012 to FY2025, to $3,147,179.
Who may spend it
Only the general fund, $3,147,179 of $9,061,421, may go to any lawful use, by a two-thirds vote.
Stabilization deposits
Town Meeting put $350,000 into the two town funds in May 2024, and passed over both articles in May 2025.
Stabilization withdrawals
The record shows $317,392 taken from stabilization funds in 9 votes, none from the general fund.
Reserves against the gap
Spent on the school gap, the general fund covers FY2028 and FY2029 and runs out in FY2030, by our arithmetic.