NEWTOWN, Conn. (AP) — Newtown, Conn., residents have rejected a budget that included money for extra school security in the wake of the December school shootings.
Voters on Tuesday turned down the $72 million school budget by 482 votes and rejected the $39 million town government budget by 62 votes. Nearly 4,500 residents voted on the plans, which would have increased spending by more than 5 percent next fiscal year.
Officials had budgeted $620,000 in school spending to hire unarmed security guards and provide the town with contingency security money. The idea was spurred by the shootings that killed 20 first-graders and six educators at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
Jeffrey Capeci, chairman of Newtown’s Legislative Council, says the budget was too steep an increase for voters to accept. Another budget must be prepared for a second vote.