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Canterbury officials outline $3.5 million preliminary 2025 operating budget, flag personnel and benefit pressures
Summary
Select Board and Budget Committee reviewed a $3,499,820 preliminary 2025 operating budget — a 5.3% increase driven largely by wages, health insurance changes and rising service contracts — and directed department-level scrutiny ahead of the public hearing.
Canterbury officials presented a $3,499,820 preliminary operating budget for 2025, an increase of $176,367 (5.3%), and identified wages, health care and contract services as principal cost drivers.
The presentation said 2024 wages including overtime were $1,237,875 (36% of operating budget); the 2025 wage line with a proposed 4% general raise is $1,340,251 (about 38%), not counting a $41,000 line for volunteer reimbursement and weekend fire coverage.
Budget chair/staff member Ken reviewed department-level changes and urged committee members to ask questions; he said the town switched health coverage to the New Hampshire Interlocal Trust and added two plan options with differing town contributions. "The town pays 70% of the cost" for a zero-deductible HMO with a $20 copay, and for a $2,000-deductible HMO with an HSA the town would pay 80% with a $1,000 town HSA contribution, the presentation said. The committee also noted the budget includes a $3,350 operating line for voting-card maintenance and testing tied to a planned purchase of one accessible voting machine.
Committee members pressed for specificity on positions, vacancy fills and personnel cost growth. Select Board member Bob urged the committee and departments to separate "need-to-have" items from "nice-to-have" requests and proposed targeting a lower overall increase than the preliminary 5.3% figure; members discussed aiming toward a 1.5–2.0% increase if feasible.
Ken and other staff said several budget lines remain to be finalized because of open vacancies (two highway positions were cited) and pending contract or software decisions; they asked departments to return with prioritized cuts or justifications. The board also confirmed the schedule toward the public hearing in early February, with additional work sessions planned to narrow the draft.
The board voiced repeated concern about personnel and service continuity: the town has shifted some departments from part-time to full-time staffing because of state retiree-hour restrictions and recruitment difficulty, and that trend has increased personnel costs. Committee members requested updated revenue and year-to-date spend data to complete final recommendations.
The meeting closed with direction to department heads: present a prioritized list of core services and proposed reductions for the budget committee to review at the next work session.
Canterbury Select Board and Budget Committee members said they will continue technical review and seek limited, targeted cuts rather than across-the-board reductions.
