Norwalk BET presses officials on finance consolidation, cybersecurity strategy and tax enforcement

NORWALK, Conn. — Norwalk’s Board of Estimate and Taxation (BET) pressed city officials Monday night on administrative efficiency, cybersecurity strategy, and tax enforcement during a review of the finance division’s proposed budget.

Board members focused on whether the city could reduce duplication between departments, how it should address growing cybersecurity demands, and how blight and zoning fines are collected through tax sales.

The meeting was part of the board’s ongoing review of departmental budgets ahead of final budget deliberations later this month.

Debate over consolidating CFO roles

Several board members raised the possibility of consolidating financial leadership between the city and Norwalk Public Schools.

Board member Troy Jellerette said the issue has surfaced repeatedly in past budget cycles and questioned whether combining the roles could reduce duplication.

“You’re paying two CFOs,” Jellerette said, comparing the city’s financial structure to a corporation.

He argued that most private corporations operate with a single chief financial officer overseeing multiple divisions rather than separate finance leaders.

Chief Financial Officer Jared Schmitt said some services are already shared between the city and the school district, but argued the two systems operate differently enough that consolidation may not produce the expected savings.

BET Chair Ed Abrams said the board has discussed consolidation for several years but has not received a formal analysis outlining potential benefits or risks.

However, a 2022 efficiency study of the City of Norwalk and Norwalk Public Schools found “no compelling evidence” that consolidating certain administrative functions would improve performance, noting that different departments often have distinct operational needs, staffing structures, and legal requirements.

Research from Syracuse University suggests consolidation savings are concentrated in very small districts, with little financial benefit once districts reach roughly 1,500 students — far smaller than Norwalk’s roughly 11,000-student system.

Cybersecurity and technology capacity

Board members also questioned how the city plans to address increasing cybersecurity risks.

Information Technology Director Joyce Liu said the department manages systems supporting more than 30 city departments and 14 municipal facilities, including police and fire operations, libraries, and administrative offices. 

She said the proposed IT budget increase is driven primarily by investments in network infrastructure, shared software systems, and cybersecurity.

The city recently launched its own fiber network after decades of leasing lines, which is expected to reduce long-term costs and make it cheaper to connect new buildings.

The department also manages more than 100 software products used across city departments, including a new permitting platform and an ADA compliance tool for the city website.

She said cybersecurity investments are necessary as attacks against local governments become more sophisticated.

Liu noted that the city is exploring 24-hour monitoring and additional tools to detect threats earlier.

Officials also discussed expanding the use of artificial intelligence tools such as Microsoft Copilot, with Mayor Barbara Smyth and some board members saying AI could improve efficiency across departments.

Abrams asked whether the city should rely more heavily on outside cybersecurity services or continue expanding internal capacity.

The efficiency study also identified information technology and cybersecurity capacity as a major challenge for the city, recommending expanded staffing and leadership roles, including a chief information security officer, rather than reducing the structure.

Blight and zoning liens in tax sales

The board also examined how the city collects unpaid blight and zoning fines through tax sales.

Tax Collector Lisa Biagiarelli said the city recently began including those liens in tax sales, but the process has created complications.

She said that, unlike tax liens, which are straightforward and never negotiated, blight and zoning liens are created and perfected by the Law Department through court action and then handed to her, and those amounts can later be negotiated down even after she has invested time and money preparing them for sale.

In one case, a roughly $148,000 lien was entered into the tax sale twice and was significantly reduced both times, which she said is inefficient and creates bad optics when taxpayers are told tax bills are non‑negotiable.

Going forward, she wants zoning and blight staff not to send liens to tax sale until they are fully perfected and there is no plan to reduce them.

Biagiarelli said the city ultimately collected about 60% of the revenue originally expected from those liens in the most recent sale. A partial success because they were the first Connecticut municipality to use the tax sale for zoning violations and did collect some 7–8‑year‑old debts, but below expectations.

She also clarified that other lien types, like fire relocation cost reimbursements, currently cannot be put into the tax sale without new state legislation, and that selling surplus city‑owned property is handled by a separate process and department, not via the tax sale mechanism.

Smyth said the administration is reviewing enforcement practices related to blight and zoning violations and will work with the law department to improve coordination.

Next steps

The BET will continue reviewing departmental budgets in the coming weeks before finalizing its recommendations.

A public hearing on the proposed budget is scheduled for March 25.