Gloucester City Council Approves $750,000 Special Education Reserve Fund

GLOUCESTER -- May 13, 2025, Gloucester City Council votes 8-0 to seed new $750,000 special education reserve fund. The council took two sequential votes May 13, first authorizing the reserve under Massachusetts General Law Chapter 40, Section 13E, then appropriating $750,000 from free cash via Supplemental Appropriation 2025SA16, in response to a spike in out-of-district special education and transportation costs during the FY25 budget cycle. CFO Connor McCorkle told the council the fund is capped by state law at roughly $1.5 million, or 2 percent of annual net school spending, and can only be drawn by concurrent majority votes of both the School Committee and City Council. The council also voted unanimously to forward letters to MassDOT seeking speed limit reductions on Dale Avenue, from 30 to 20 miles per hour, and on Hancock Street, from 30 to 15 miles per hour, both sponsored by Ward 2 Councilor Dylan Benson. City Auditor Kenny Costa, appearing remotely, reported the city has earned the Government Finance Officers Association's Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for seven consecutive years.