Blackstone assessors approve motor-vehicle abatements, send unpaid Vision invoice to special town meeting; cloud-hosting bill deferred

The Town of Blackstone Board of Assessors on March 20, 2025 approved multiple routine administrative items, signed a list of motor-vehicle abatements posted since February and voted to place an unpaid invoice from Vision Government Solutions on a special town meeting warrant while deferring a larger Vision invoice pending clarification.

The board voted to approve the minutes for Feb. 20, 2025 and to place a $980 invoice from Vision Government Solutions — which the board said arrived after the June 30 fiscal deadline — onto the special town meeting warrant so the town can lawfully pay it. The board did not approve a separate Vision invoice for $5,410 described on the paperwork as “cloud hosting”; members asked staff to return that bill with clarifying documentation at the next meeting.

The meeting also included approval and signatures for motor-vehicle abatements posted since the last meeting. Board members said the posted list contained about 38 abatements. The board separately approved abatements for service personnel and for non-veteran excise abatements that were on the agenda. Members discussed one police motorcycle abatement that lacked a completed form; staff said the town would obtain the required paperwork and signatures before final processing.

Board members approved payment for the meeting minutes prepared by Nicole (role described in the meeting as minute-taker), and the board voted to enter an executive session at the meeting’s close. A roll-call on the executive-session motion recorded yes votes from Joe Morin and Bob Klutrovitz; Jeremiah Carey was absent.

Why it matters: these routine approvals clear backlog items that affect resident refunds and town accounting. Placing the unpaid $980 invoice on the special town meeting warrant ensures the town addresses an out-of-period liability; deferring the $5,410 charge prevents the town from paying a bill whose description staff said may not match current services.

Board action details and context

• Minutes approval: The board corrected an earlier reference to the draft minutes and approved the minutes for Feb. 20, 2025. The motion carried unanimously among members present.

• Vision Government Solutions invoices: The $980 invoice was approved to be placed on the special town meeting warrant because it arrived after June 30 and therefore cannot be paid from the prior fiscal year's operating warrant. The larger Vision invoice, listed as $5,410 and described on its line item as “cloud hosting” or “online site,” prompted questions from members about whether the town still contracted for that service. The board asked staff to send the invoice back to Vision for clarification and to bring corrected paperwork to the next meeting rather than approve payment at this session.

• Motor-vehicle abatements: The board signed and approved the posted list of motor-vehicle abatements (about 38 entries) and separately approved abatements for service personnel and non-veteran excise abatements that appeared on the agenda. Members noted one police motorcycle exemption lacked a completed abatement form; staff said they would obtain the necessary form and signatures (Town Administrator Matt and staff member Chad were identified in discussion as the contacts to resolve documentation).

• Minutes compensation: The board voted to approve Nicole’s minutes (the meeting’s minute-taker) for preparing the meeting record.

• Executive session: The board voted to enter executive session at the end of the meeting. Roll call recorded Joe Morin and Bob Klutkovitz as voting yes; Jeremiah Carey was recorded absent earlier in the meeting.

Attendance and process notes

Only two members of the three-member board were present: Joe Morin and Bob Klutrovitz. The board frequently handled these items by motion and voice vote; where the record shows only “Aye,” the minutes indicate unanimous consent among members present. Multiple agenda items were handled as routine business with short discussion and no public comment.

What’s next

Staff will seek clarification from Vision Government Solutions about the $5,410 invoice and return the item to the assessors for consideration at the next meeting. The town will place the $980 invoice on a special town meeting warrant for payment. Staff will also obtain completed abatement forms for the police vehicle and finalize any outstanding documentation required to process abatements.