WEST BROOKFIELD, Mass. - Residents in West Brookfield will soon have to vote on a $1 million override for the town's budget.

Town Administrator Ronald San Angelo said town expenses are growing at a much faster rate than revenue, largely because of yearly state-mandated increases. The town has been using money from its savings to pay bills, but San Angelo said that's no longer an option.

The cost of the override is $146.74 each quarter, or about a $1.60 a day for the average single-family home, to help protect important town services. 

"Every service is on the line," San Angelo said. "I don’t want to scare people but that is the reality. We can’t get money where there is no money. We know, we've heard it from everyone, we live it in our own daily lives - it's hard to make ends meet.

"But the other side of it is you want the police department to show up when you need them. The library and senior center are so valuable to the community, particularly the seniors in town. There are so many departments that are important to people and we need them to keep functioning and we are going to do it on a shoe string, but we need enough money to provide for the shoe strings.”

Any extra money will go towards repairing old buildings or buying new equipment. San Angelo said a referendum is expected later this year, along with several public hearings to help answer resident questions.