Approved Minutes of the Budget Advisory Committee (BAC)

Town of Temple, NH

May 14, 2024

Members present                                                                   Others present

(in alphabetical order)                                                            Bruce Kantner (select board)

Steve Andersen (wheelands@aol.com)                                       Sherry Fiske (select board)

Rae Barnhisel (zymurgy@prexar.com)                                       Bruce Kullgren, Jr. (moderator)

Charlene Eddy (ceddy1@netzero.net)                                         Jennifer Kullgren

Brian Kullgren (kullgren@aol.com)                                             Ted Petro (select board)

Chris Nolte (uplanddogs@aol.com)                                            

Paul Quinn (pquinn@helmers.com)                                            

 

Meeting called to order at 7:07 pm

A. Minutes: April 23, 2024, minutes approved as written.

Barnhisel (also a planning board member) provided each member with a copy of the Population and Housing chapter of the draft Master Plan’s Basic Studies. Eddy provided the history of a previous BAC in Temple.

B. New business:

1.      Andersen requested that Quinn (also the conservation commission chair) report on the source of funds that will be used to remove dumped items from the Chris Weston Conservation Land. Quinn told the committee that the commission was drawing up a policy and seeking public input on how to spend conservation funds and that the select board was handling the clean up. He did not know what the cost was estimated to be but said that the cleanup will take place in June. Kullgren asked Bruce Kantner to report on the source of funds. Kantner did not know the source but said he would have the information the following day. Eddy asked whether it was the commission’s or the select board’s responsibility to clean up the site. Kantner replied that it was the select board’s responsibility and that the commission only managed the land.

      Kullgren asked that the BAC make a recommendation that the select board wait to take action until funds had been appropriated for that purpose. It was agreed that Barnhisel would draft a letter to the select board requesting information on what funds would be used. Quinn asked that Barnhisel request an estimate of the cost, the source of the funds, and the authorization the select board has to clean up the site (draft letter attached). Discussion followed on whether the $2000 that was appropriated to the health officer could be used for the clean-up. Barnhisel said she had asked Fiske at the 2024 Budget hearing and 2003 Town meeting what the purpose would be of providing the health officer with $2000. It was agreed that Fiske’s answer in both meetings was that the funds were to be used for soil and water tests.

2.      Sherry Fiske asked the BAC to address the following issues:

A)    Fiske reported that purchasing materials to replace the town common rails (Warrant Article 7, 2024 for $2500) was likely to exceed its budget. The BAC agreed that the funds would have to come from an account in which funds for repair and maintenance of the common had been appropriated. Two sources were identified:

1)      Trust Funds: Common Fund (balance $2,821.62 according to 2024 Annual Report). Andersen suggested that the $2000 principal be left untouched but that the $821.62 be used.

2)      General Fund: Government Properties: 01-4194.20-651 GB Common Repairs & Maint. (balance $6,000 according to the 4/22/03 Quarterly Report “Actual and Budgeted Expenses & Encumbrances”).

Eddy pointed out that the Town of Temple Budget Worksheet 2024 that was provided to the voters at the 2024 Budget hearing and 2024 Town meeting did not reflect the account names as used in the town’s budget. The 2024 worksheet lists the account “GB Property Repairs and Maintenance” and does not mention the word “Common.”

Fiske said she would look into what funds in the General Fund have already been allocated to repair and maintenance of the Common. Barnhisel requested that Budget Worksheets generated by the select board’s office have complete account names.

B)     Fiske reported that Steve McCrea has discussed being paid for initiating and maintaining a Website on Temple ($189 startup fee; $150/year to maintain). Discussion followed on the concerns that the town has no control over the site, the advantages of having a capable person develop and maintain the site, the possibility that McCrea may give up the site if he does not receive payment, the potential revenue source of the site, the fact that offensive material cannot be regulated, and whether the “official” web site of the Town is sanctioned.

      Andersen asked why the select board had not included the funds in their 2024 proposed budget. Fiske suggested it could come from the Executive account: Board of Selectmen: EX Printing and Advertising (01-4130.10-550: $612 balance remaining 4/22/03). Kantner suggested it could be taken from the Communication account (no record of such an account). The BAC agreed that funds had not yet been appropriated for Web page design and maintenance and so would need to be included in the 2024 proposed budget.

C)     Fiske reported that the Annual Report was put out for competitive bid due to the statute that restricts town officials from entering into a contract with the town when payment exceeds $200. She showed us the previous year’s (May 2024) newspaper advertisement and suggested she run the same ad again. She noted that in the BAC’s previous minutes (April 9, 2024), there was discussion of recommending that the select board involve the BAC when considering competitive bids. Kantner read an excerpt of the minutes. The BAC agreed that it would not need to get involved in choosing the particular contractor but would need to be closely involved in the process.

D)    Fiske reported that Antrim has a “cafeteria-style” of health insurance.

E)     Fiske reported that a selectman from the Town of Sharon expressed interest in obtaining police coverage from Temple and has already received interest from the Town of New Ipswich. Discussion followed on the difficulty of developing a contract that would not incur unreasonable liability. Petro stated that New Ipswich had not expressed interest in providing police coverage to Sharon. The BAC agreed to postpone discussion of the issue.

C. Ongoing business:

1.       Barnhisel provided a draft working letter to Debra Harling to request a bin or mailbox in the municipal offices, access to the municipal offices, verification of payment to CPI Printing in Peterborough for photocopying the detailed budget for the previous town meeting and BAC access to the Town Hall for future meetings, and one copy of the Account Detail each quarter to accompany the 6 copies of quarterly reports.

2.       Members worked on the 2024 Detailed Budget to identify fixed costs, starting with payroll and benefits, and calculated the percent they comprise of the individual department’s budget and the town budget.

Meeting adjourned at 9:40 pm

 

Respectfully submitted,

Rae Barnhisel

May 28, 2024