Brookline's 2026 Override — What It Means for You

The Prop 2½ Structural Gap

Massachusetts law (Proposition 2½) limits annual property tax increases to 2.5% plus new growth (~1% in Brookline). But the town's actual costs, driven by salaries, health insurance (up 12%/year), special education, and inflation, are growing at 5–7% per year. This creates a gap that widens every year.

Projected FY27 non-enterprise revenue is $440.2M (a 4.9% increase over FY26), of which $349.5M is property tax levy; the town remains overwhelmingly dependent on property taxes. The Governor's budget provided only 2.5% growth in Unrestricted General Government Aid and 2.9% in Chapter 70 school aid.

This isn't about new programs. The town administrator called this "a Corolla, not a Cadillac" override. It maintains existing services.

📉 Why Prop 2½ Hits Brookline Harder Than Most

Prop 2½ hits Brookline especially hard because we have less commercial and large residential development in the pipeline to generate new-growth revenue. Cities like Boston and Cambridge, which have active construction pipelines, generate enough new growth to keep pace with costs without overrides. Brookline's new growth adds only ~1% to our tax levy, well below the statewide average.

This isn't new, and we're not alone

Nearly every municipality in Massachusetts faces this same structural crunch: Prop 2½ limits levy growth to ~2.5%, but costs grow at 5–7%. Brookline voters approved an $11.98M override in 2023 (61% Yes) for exactly this reason. That override was designed as a 3-year bridge, phased in over FY24–FY26. Those three years are up, and the structural gap between what Prop 2½ allows and what services actually cost has reasserted itself. This is how the system works under current state law.

The difference is that towns with stronger new growth can absorb more of that gap without going to the ballot. Brookline can't. With only ~1.1% new growth, overrides are our primary tool for closing the structural deficit, and that will keep being true every few years until the state changes Prop 2½ or the town finds new revenue sources.

PSB has published a detailed impact analysis of what a failed override means for schools. The town side faces its own cuts. Here's the summary.

🏫 Schools: 210 staff positions eliminated (14.5%)

K–8: Class sizes jump from ~19 to 30+

84 PreK–8 teaching positions cut means 36% of classrooms closed by 2029. Average class size rises to 30.3 (range: 19–49). Every school is affected:

K–8 after-school activities (sports, clubs, band, orchestra, drama, homework clubs) eliminated or fee-based. South Brookline bus service eliminated. In year 1, before classroom sections are touched: Grades 6–8 World Language eliminated (15 FTE), Grades 4–8 Orchestra Program (Conservatory) eliminated (7 FTE), Grade 1 classroom aides cut 50% (13 FTE).

BHS: Class sizes rise 20–50%

Averages have a ±5 range (e.g., English classes of 27–37). Science labs are built for 24. Course sections drop ~29%, raising state compliance concerns.

🏛️ Town services: 19 positions eliminated

By FY28, the town would need to cut 20+ firefighters and lose a fire engine. Police hiring freeze continues. Senior Medical Transit Program ends.

Brookline's proposed override is large in absolute dollars but moderate as a percentage of its tax levy. Brookline's underlying tax rate is already among the lowest in the metro area. Even after the override, Brookline homeowners with the residential exemption would pay an effective rate (~0.93%) below Newton (0.97%), Stoneham (1.01%), Wellesley (1.02%), Arlington (1.07%), Needham (1.08%), Belmont (1.15%), Melrose (1.15%), and Milton (1.18%).

📚 Per-Student Spending: Brookline vs. Peer Districts

Brookline's per-student spending is squarely in the middle of its peer group, less than Cambridge, Weston, Wellesley, Somerville, and Lexington. This is not a district that overspends.

How much of the budget actually goes to schools?

When people ask what share of the budget goes to schools vs. town services, they typically mean departmental spending: school appropriations vs. municipal departments (public safety, public works, general government, human services, culture & recreation). On this basis, Brookline allocated about 63% to schools in FY2025, and has been pretty consistent on that breakdown for the last decade. That's in the bottom half of its suburban peer group.

The override is permanent but typically phased over three fiscal years. The exact year-by-year split is still being determined. The Town Administrator and Select Board are discussing whether to front-load, phase evenly, or use another approach. Here's one possible scenario:

Schools: ~$18M override over 3 years

The expected school override ask is approximately $18M over three years. The FY2027 Financial Plan projected a three-year gap of $19.8M as of February 12, 2026, but the final number reflects revised staff recommendations. Even after the town applied its share of revenue increases and shared-cost reductions, the schools started FY27 with a gap of $6.4M. The schools aren't asking for extravagant increases; costs are driven by health insurance (+12%/yr), special education mandates, and contractual salary increases. The schools have already made cuts: eliminated the equity office, slashed world language, and approved a first round of FY27 reductions.

Municipal Departments: ~$5.3M proposed override

The Town Administrator has proposed a separate ~$5.3M override for municipal (non-school) departments, phased over three fiscal years. This is less in real dollars than the municipal share of the 2023 override. Here's what it covers:

Where Our Revenue Comes From

The town is overwhelmingly dependent on property taxes: they make up 79.4% of General Fund revenues. The rest comes from local receipts (8.5%), state aid (6.1%), free cash, and other funds. The Governor's budget provided only 2.5% growth in unrestricted state aid and 2.9% in Chapter 70 school aid.

📍 See How Your Precinct Voted in 2023

The 2023 override passed 61% to 39%. See precinct-level results and strategic analysis.