Committee recommends sustainability budget after energy manager funding shift

The City of Salem Committee on Administration and Finance on June 2 recommended approval of the Sustainability & Resiliency department’s FY2027 personnel and expenditures budgets after a presentation from Director Neil Duffy.

Duffy, who leads the department of four full‑time and one part‑time staff, told the committee the department oversees citywide climate and resilience programs and community outreach. "We are a small but mighty staff of four full‑time and one part‑time administrator," he said.

A focal point of the presentation was a proposed funding change for the city’s energy manager. Duffy said the department is asking that the energy manager’s salary be reallocated so that roughly 75% is funded from the general fund rather than a revolving fund that has historically been sustained by solar incentive payments. "Those SRA payments are going to phase out in 2027," Duffy said, explaining the switch is intended to avoid ongoing operating costs falling to a shrinking revolving fund.

Councilors pressed Duffy for context. When asked how Salem defines "resilience," Duffy said it refers to the city’s ability to "bounce back" from climate impacts and stressed the department balances work on emission reductions with preparing communities for heat, flooding and other impacts.

Duffy also updated the committee on projects tied to the department’s work. He said department staff have been on the building committee for a planned net‑zero high school and noted two grant awards referenced in the meeting record: a $5 million Green School Works grant and a $7 million Department of Energy Resources test grant supporting related school projects. He described the ferry of grants and interagency coordination required when two Mass School Building Authority projects share a site.

On electric vehicle infrastructure, Duffy said the city has no immediate plan to add more municipal chargers downtown because observed use has stagnated; the department completed a curbside charging feasibility study with technical assistance from the Mass Clean Energy Center. He said the Salem Power Choice municipal aggregation program has about a 70% participation rate and that third‑party supplier solicitations contribute to opt‑out behaviors among residents.

The committee recorded motions from Council King to recommend the sustainability personnel budget and the department expenditures budget; both motions were seconded by Council Flynn and carried by recorded hand/voice votes (the committee noted five in favor). The committee record shows a sustainability department total of $294,927.

Next steps: the committee’s recommendation will be forwarded in the FY27 budget process for final adoption according to the city’s established budget calendar.