06/12/2026
A Message to the Holyoke City Council:
The Holyoke Taxpayers Association respectfully urges the Holyoke City Council to apply
sound fiscal judgment as it reviews the proposed FY 2027 municipal budget. At a time
when residents and businesses face significant financial pressure, taxpayers deserve
confidence that every proposed expenditure is being considered with care, discipline, and
a realistic understanding of what Holyoke can afford.
Over the past several years, taxpayers have faced a growing financial burden. Families,
businesses, and seniors on fixed incomes have been required to absorb higher property
taxes while also managing sharp increases in nearly every essential household expense.
Utility bills and insurance premiums have risen, and the costs of food, gasoline, housing,
and necessities continue to strain workers and retirees alike. As a result, there is little
room left in household/business budgets for another increase, no matter how well it may
be justified on paper.
The same discipline that seniors, families, and businesses apply at the kitchen table
should guide this Council’s budget decisions. When costs rise faster than income, people
must focus on essentials, postpone nonessential spending, and make difficult choices to
stay financially stable. Taxpayers deserve that same restraint and prioritization in the
municipal budget process. Every proposed increase should be closely reviewed, every
department should justify its requests, and the Council should clearly separate core
services from discretionary spending.
The City Council is taxpayers’ last line of defense. Once a budget is approved, taxpayers
must absorb the consequences by stretching their paychecks, adjusting household
budgets, and cutting back elsewhere to cover higher taxes and fees. For that reason, the
Council’s review must be more than a formality. It should serve as a meaningful check on
unnecessary spending growth and on proposals that may be well intended but remain
unaffordable for the people who pay for them.
We respectfully ask the Council to examine not only proposed spending increases, but
also the long-term obligations they create. New programs, additional staff, expanded
benefits, and ongoing operating costs do not end after a single fiscal year. Caution is not
obstruction; it is responsible governance. A budget that grows beyond what residents and
businesses can sustain is not prudent, even if it appears balanced on paper. Fiscal
responsibility and strong public services are not competing goals; they should go hand in
hand.
As you consider the proposed FY 2027 budget, we urge you to keep in mind the working
families, tenants, seniors, retirees, and businesses already under financial strain. Please
review this budget with the seriousness it demands and reject unnecessary spending
increases. The people of Holyoke need a Council that will stand firm, exercise
independent judgment, ask tough questions, and protect taxpayers from a budget that
grows faster than they can afford.
Thank you for your time, your service, and your thoughtful consideration of this matter. We
respectfully ask you to remember that fiscal restraint is not only sound policy, but also a
matter of fairness to the taxpayers who support Holyoke and rely on you to be their final
line of defense.
Lori Belanger
Executive Director
Holyoke Taxpayers’ Association
