Plymouth Select Board Ranks Goals, Eyes Fiscal Cliff With Shrinking Levy Margin

PLYMOUTH — March 4, 2026 — Plymouth Select Board signals fiscal alarm as excess levy capacity falls toward $270,000. At a March 4 workshop, Finance Director Lynne Barrett walked the five-member board through the town's 18-month budget cycle, disclosing that GLP-1 drug claims are tracking toward $3.8 million in the current fiscal year and that health insurance premiums are rising 10 to 14 percent annually. Chair David Golden Jr. and members Kevin Canty and Deb Iaquinto pressed for a five-year rolling financial forecast, with Canty warning, "I don't want us to get to December of 28 and suddenly be in a position where we have to either do budget cuts or do an override." The board set an April 7 deadline for staff to return with a revised budget timeline and a preliminary forecast. In a goals-ranking session, Canty secured the top community-safety slot for the long-stalled drug recognition expert program, which he said directly limits the town's ability to prosecute OUI drug cases; the projected cost of training was cited at roughly $70,000. Town Manager Derek Brindisi was directed to formalize the full priority rankings across all eight goal categories.