Select Board Meeting ~ April 14, 2026

2026-04-14 · Select Board · 3:25:54 · watch on YouTube →

This was the select board's last working session on the FY2027 budget before sending it to the budget committee, with the town's 2024 audit moved to the front of the meeting. The auditor, Jennifer, reported an unmodified opinion, no material weaknesses or significant deficiencies, and one repeat management letter comment about pay raises not documented in personnel files. The budget committee's chair and vice chair, Milt and Jill, were invited up to put questions to the board, covering CMP's liability for road damage, a new unemployment line, and delivery of the budget packet before their own meetings. The board then went through the budget page by page: John (?) moved a series of reductions, including an 8% cap on wage increases, removal of the $4,000 text messaging service, a part-time administrative assistant, and cuts to public works wages and overtime, and the recorded votes went against them, while his motion to raise crack sealing from $15,000 to $25,000 carried and his motion to fund a bulky waste day failed 3 to 2. The budget as amended was adopted 4 to 1, carrying a mill rate of $25.39, a 13.4% increase, and a budgeted use of $500,000 of fund balance.

No written minutes could be matched to this meeting. The transcript records that the speaker changed but never who was speaking, so any name attached to a statement below is inferred from context and is marked (?).

What was discussed

1. 6:27
   Call to order and agenda change

   The meeting opened at 6:30 on April 14 with the pledge. The board moved the audit review ahead of old business and left the rest of new business in place; Josh (?) seconded and the change was made without opposition.

2. 6:27
   Public comment on the parking lot meeting claim

   A resident asked the board to correct the record, saying the select board chair had stated at an earlier meeting that the budget committee was holding illegal meetings in a parking lot when no budget committee meeting or budget discussion had taken place. The chair replied that under MMA guidance four or more committee members gathering unannounced constitutes a meeting, that three select board members would count the same way, and that five people were talking about the budget when he walked out.

3. 11:28
   2024 audit results

   The auditor said the fieldwork was done the week of February 10, 2025 and the reports were dated March 2, 2026, a lag she attributed partly to the prior audit going out late. The financial statements received an unmodified opinion with no material weaknesses and no significant deficiencies and one minor management letter recommendation. General fund balance fell $419,000 in 2024, mostly from budgeted transfers to capital and other funds, while capital funds rose $411,000 and special revenue funds rose $149,000, largely on a $160,000 revaluation transfer.

4. 16:34
   2024 budget compared to actual

   Revenues came in about $178,000 over budget, under 2%, helped by excise taxes and about $107,000 more interest on higher cash balances. Expenditures were about $70,000 under budget; public works was $88,000 under after a retirement and lower paving, salt and chemical costs, while solid waste ran $57,000 over on the timing of hauling invoices. The percentage the auditor gave for how close expenditures ran to budget is garbled in the recording, appearing as both 6% and 26%.

5. 22:35
   Payroll documentation comment and minutes

   The single management letter item was a repeat comment: raises for a couple of employees were approved but not documented as approved in the personnel files. The town manager, Jerry (?), said the town hired a human resources consultant after the previous year's audit and that the finding covers a period before that work began. Minutes of the previous meeting were approved without opposition.

6. 27:55
   Budget committee question on CMP and road damage

   Milt and Jill, the budget committee's chair and vice chair, put their questions to the board, including whether a lower road repair figure reflected an expected CMP payment for repaving a road the recording renders as "stack goal" and "stackable". The written answer was that there is no bond or agreement with CMP for the damage, though a speaker then said the town still holds a bond; the recording does not reconcile the two. Calvin and the town manager said CMP is negotiating hard, that proving the road was broken by two years of heavy truck traffic after the fact is difficult, and that it may end up with lawyers.

7. 32:58
   How any CMP money could be spent, and a new unemployment line

   The town's finance consultant, Mark (?), said the town cannot budget an anticipated CMP payment and would need a warrant article before spending any proceeds, and suggested a standing article covering proceeds generally; the board agreed to take it up when warrant language is set. On question four, unemployment is a new line for FY2027 at $3,000: the town is a direct reimbursement employer, past claims were absorbed as departmental expenses, one bill reached back to 2021, and a full claim was put at roughly $15,000 for 26 weeks of benefits.

8. 38:00
   Budget packet delivery and the budget committee email

   Staff committed to getting the budget documents, the written questions and answers, call volume reports and a code enforcement report to the committee by Thursday the 16th, ahead of the committee's meeting on the 20th, in print or electronically. The budget committee's group email address is not forwarding to members' addresses, a Gmail forwarding restriction that IT is working around. Both bodies return for a joint meeting on April 28.

9. 48:27
   Budget overview, mill rate and use of fund balance

   A school figure added the day of the meeting brought the school and townwide total to $9,745,518, and as presented the mill rate is $25.39, a 13.4% increase, with $500,000 of fund balance budgeted for use. Asked directly, Mark (?) said that is more than he would recommend, that he would not go past $300,000, and that $400,000 would be the midpoint of the range. Wages and benefits are 13.9% of the budget, fixed costs 77.7% and variable and discretionary costs 8.5%; the new wage scale would not take effect until after town meeting.

10. 58:54
    Funding sources

    Excise tax is budgeted at $1.28 million, up 12.1%; permits and fees at $160,500, up 86.5%, driven mainly by code enforcement fees that ran $108,000 in twelve months against a $65,000 budget; charges for services at $287,120, up 54.2%, including $125,000 for the new trash bag fee. Homestead and BETE figures are placeholders that change when the mill rate is set at commitment. No motions were made on these lines.

11. 1:04:04
    Ambulance fee revenue

    John (?) moved to raise budgeted ambulance fee revenue from $125,000 to $157,000 on the assumption that the board's recent 20% fee increase would carry through. The fire chief said a 20% fee rise does not produce 20% more revenue because Medicare, Medicaid and state aid pay set rates, and Mark, given the floor, noted twelve months of actuals were $113,000 against $118,000 in FY24. The chief also said he will bring the board a proposal in two weeks about taking over Palmer's EMS.

12. 1:14:53
    Administration budget and an 8% cap on wage increases

    Administration totals $68,340. John (?) moved to hold full-time staff wages to an 8% increase rather than 15%, spread over two years, arguing the one-year increase is a burden on taxpayers; Josh (?) seconded. Mark (?) put an 8% across-the-board approach at about $79,000 saved, and other members argued the town's pay is in the bottom quarter for the region and that losing staff would cost more than the increase.

13. 1:26:01
    Assessing, information technology and the text messaging service

    Assessing totals $26,800 and information technology $77,515, with $4,000 for text messaging moved out of the website line into its own line. John (?) moved to zero the text messaging line, saying the town already communicates by website and social media. Roughly 900 numbers are signed up, about 22% of the town, though the recording also says 9,000 at one point; members argued the service reaches residents who do not use a computer.

14. 1:36:49
    Planning and code enforcement, and the new administrative assistant

    Planning and code enforcement totals $108,030, a 16.3% decrease, updated by the town manager to $108,510. John (?) moved to make the new administrative assistant a 28-hour part-time position without health insurance, with the cost split between planning and codes and public works; Deb (?) seconded. Staff said an offer has already been made, that the roughly $40,800 saving assumes the hire takes a family plan, and that the post backfills a code enforcement officer vacancy at about $7 an hour less.

15. 1:52:40
    Fire and EMS, and targeted traffic enforcement

    Page 13 at $749,630, a 9.5% increase, drew questions about per diem wages but no motion. Public safety carries animal control at $22,600 and a blank line for targeted enforcement; the board discussed paying the county for enforcement details at roughly $400 an hour, funded through a warrant article from unspent money rather than the tax levy, and noted any ticket revenue goes to the county. Total public safety is $772,230.

16. 1:58:10
    Public works wages and overtime

    Corrected figures put the page 16 total at $1,409,582. John (?) moved to cut full-time wages to a 15% increase rather than 27%, overtime from $39,330 to $30,000, and part-time wages to $35,000. Calvin (?) said he and his foreman drove plow trucks themselves through the shortage, some weeks 60 to 80 hours with everything over 40 unpaid, and that he is already over the current overtime budget.

17. 2:18:50
    Crack sealing and fuel

    John (?) moved to raise crack sealing from $15,000 to $20,000 and then amended his own motion to $25,000, after Calvin (?) said he spends whatever is given and used $20,000 last year. Gas and diesel is budgeted at $45,000, with diesel locked in under a contract and gasoline priced at rack plus 20 cents; $5,000 was added because prices moved after the contract was set. Municipal buildings is $38,728.

18. 2:24:04
    Bulky waste day

    John (?) moved to add $19,000 for a bulky waste day, raised from his opening $16,000, together with $3,750 of new revenue from a $15 charge per vehicle based on about 250 vehicles last year. Members disagreed over collecting money at the gate, whether the day should pay for itself, and the consistency of cutting a $4,000 service used by 900 people while funding a day used by 250 vehicles. The town manager cautioned that a push to clear bulky waste before the new bag system starts could put this May's event several thousand dollars over its $15,000 budget.

19. 2:39:44
    Outside organizations

    The budget does not fund baseball or the snowmobile club directly; a warrant article will let the board pass through to a recognised snowmobile club up to what the state reimburses for registrations, about $1,900 last year. Requests such as baseball would have to come from a standing fund balance that has no plan for replenishment.

20. 2:44:50
    General assistance, debt service, county and education

    General assistance stays at $1,000, with the chair arguing the $50,000 contingency is the place to cover a claim and noting the state reimburses 70%; a member said a family put in a hotel would need money found somewhere. Debt service is $624,111 and cannot be adjusted; on a like-for-like twelve month comparison education is up 10.1%, debt service down about 1.88% and county tax up 12.6%. The board declined to cut reserves, which the chair said are what keep the town out of debt.

21. 2:49:59
    Adoption of the budget and the tax assessment picture

    Josh (?) moved to accept the budget as amended and Rebecca (?) seconded. Mark showed the municipal share of the total tax assessment falling to 11.8%, with the municipal assessment about $500,000 lower than in 2021 while the school's share is $2.5 million higher, and attributed part of the municipal drop to better revenue budgeting rather than spending cuts.

22. 3:00:19
    Fund balance projection

    The unassigned fund balance is projected at $3.1 million at the end of this fiscal year, dropping to $2.6 million going into FY28 if the full $500,000 is used, against a recommended floor of two to three months of expenditures, roughly $2.1 million for two months. Dropping the budgeted use to $300,000 would take the levy increase to about 15.8%. The chair said he accepts the risk of $500,000 because added taxable valuation usually means less of it is actually spent.

23. 3:10:45
    County budget committee seats and state level proposals

    The chair said budget committee members have been telling residents that the select board declines two seats on the county budget committee, and that this is false because those are elected positions covering a district shared with other towns. He also reported GPCOG task force work on a 1% local use tax that, at a 65/35 split within a county, could bring about $350,000 to Durham, and said the state currently covers about 44% of the town's school costs against a 55% target.

24. 3:15:54
    Where pay as you throw bags will be sold

    Jerry brought a draft list of retail outlets for review. The board asked to add Market Basket, Bow Street Market and confirmed online ordering, and asked that the local get-and-go be used as much as possible; the list can be added to later while negotiations continue. The RSU 5 and Region 10 warrants and notice of elections were then signed.

25. 3:21:00
    Manager report, board reports and announcements

    A public works position is open after someone left, an offer is out for the administrative assistant, the GPCOG subregional meeting is April 29 from 5:30 to 7:30 in North Yarmouth, and the manager is away the week of April 19. Rebecca (?) asked that all board members use an email signature carrying the website address and the text message sign-up link. Announcements: automated trash pickup starts April 15; the town office is closed Monday April 20 for Patriots Day; the conservation committee meets April 22; budget committee meetings were read out both as April 20 at the fire station and April 22 at the Eureka Center; the joint select board and budget committee meeting is April 28 at 6:30 at the fire station.

What was decided

• 6:27
  Move the review of the 2024 audit to the start of the meeting, ahead of old business, leaving the rest of new business in place; seconded by Josh.passed
• 22:35
  Approve the minutes of the previous meeting.passed
• 1:09:22
  John's motion to raise budgeted ambulance fee revenue from $125,000 to $157,000, seconded by Josh, was withdrawn by him after discussion and no vote was taken.outcome unclear
• 1:26:01
  Motion to adjust line 1-20-7015 so full-time staff wages reflect only an 8% increase instead of 15%, moved by John (?) and seconded by Josh.failed
• 1:36:49
  Motion by John, seconded by Josh, to zero the $4,000 text messaging services line; the chair stated the motion did not carry, 4 to 1, and information technology stayed at $77,515.failed
• 1:47:08
  Motion by John, seconded by Deb, to make the new administrative assistant a 28-hour part-time position without benefits and adjust the planning and codes and public works lines accordingly. The chair called for those in favour and opposed but the recording does not state the result.outcome unclear
• 2:13:36
  Motion by John to hold public works full-time wages to a 15% increase, cut overtime from $39,330 to $30,000 and cut part-time wages to $35,000.failed
• 2:18:50
  Motion by John, amended by him from $20,000 to $25,000, to raise the crack sealing line from $15,000 to $25,000.passed
• 2:39:44
  Motion by John to add $19,000 for a bulky waste day and $3,750 of revenue from a $15 per vehicle charge; the chair stated it failed 3 to 2, leaving solid waste at $51,050 and no bulky waste day in 2027.failed
• 3:05:36
  Motion by Josh, seconded by Rebecca, to accept the FY2027 budget as amended, carrying a $25.39 mill rate, a 13.4% increase and $500,000 of budgeted fund balance use; the chair stated it passed 4 to 1.passed
• 3:15:54
  Sign the Regional School Unit 5 and Region 10 warrants and notice of elections.passed

An outcome reads "unclear" where the recording does not state it plainly. The recogniser drops short words, and "the motion does not carry" is one missing word from its opposite.

Worth knowing

• 48:27
  As adopted the budget carries a mill rate of $25.39, a 13.4% increase, and relies on $500,000 of fund balance; the town's finance consultant, Mark, said he would not recommend using more than $300,000 and warned that budgeting this much risks a sharp tax increase in a following year.
• 2:39:44
  There will be no bulky waste day in 2027. The motion to fund one at $19,000, with a $15 per vehicle charge, failed 3 to 2 and the solid waste line stayed at $51,050.
• 3:00:19
  The unassigned fund balance is projected at $3.1 million now and $2.6 million going into FY28 if the full $500,000 is spent, against a floor of about $2.1 million for two months of expenditures; Mark (?) said next year's budget effectively starts about 5% up on the levy because that $500,000 will not be there again.
• 3:10:45
  The chair said the budget committee has chosen not to record its meetings or take notes this year, so the town has no record of its deliberations without attending, and separately disputed as false a claim that the select board is declining two seats on the county budget committee.

Motion language found in the transcript

Located by pattern matching, with no model involved: "I move that", "I'll second", "all those in favour". This is an independent check on the summary above: 18 passages of motion language, against 11 decisions summarised.

Elsewhere

← 2026-03-24 Select Board2026-04-28 Select Board →All meetings