Cohasset Operating Budget Peer Analysis
In 2025, three issues have arisen related to town budgeting:
A school budget shortfall of more than $1,000,000, which resulted in adding fees to residents in excess of $500,000.
The 135 King Street Public Safety Building, approved for $10 million in 2023, ballooned to nearly $27 million after design was completed in 2025.
The proposed enterprise fund for the RTF, which did not pass in 2025 and is being re-proposed as a requirement due to budget constraints (the town administration built their budget assuming it would be approved).
These three issues show a failure in both operational and capital budget planning that will result in increased taxes, debt exclusions (surcharges on top of taxes), and increased fees for residents.
After town leaders dismissed citizen outreach with project-specific recommendations for cost savings of potentially $8 million on the 135 King Street Public Safety Building, it became clear that addressing financial overruns at the individual project level was not resonating with current town leadership.
Their dismissal signaled a clear need to better understand the town’s spending across all functions and served as the impetus for a citizen-led financial analysis of the town’s budget and spending histories described herein.
This analysis shows that adjusting Cohasset’s budget closer to its peer group (other MA towns of similar population and geographic size) can result in savings of nearly $5 million per year, or almost 10% of the town’s budget.
These savings, even if partially realized, could solve the three issues identified this year and thereby:
Remove school fees,
Fully fund the RTF as-is, and
Ensure the town is saving for future infrastructure projects, like the 135 King Street Public Safety Building.
A key takeaway from the analysis is the imperative need to address the town’s capital budgeting process for large infrastructure projects. The public safety facility design process resulted in much more than the town voted to build – and with the 62 Elm Street Fire Department Headquarters, Middle-High School project, and water department projects on the horizon, design and cost controls will be paramount to control Cohasset’s debt, taxes, and bond rating.
Read the full report here.
