Merrimack council moves town budget, capital reserve articles to Feb. 13 public hearing after hours-long debate on fire overtime and ambulance billing

The Merrimack Town Council on Jan. 29 voted to send the proposed town budget and two capital-reserve warrant articles to a public hearing on Feb. 13 after an extended budget deliberation that focused on capital reserve deposits, the town’s fund-balance policy and sharp increases in overtime—particularly in the fire department—plus a separate discussion about ambulance billing and possible revenue options.

Town Manager Paul presented the numbers and the proposed adjustments. "So the review of the capital reserve funds...these are the ones that I am asking the council to fund and the residents to fund for next year," Paul said, outlining a net general-fund capital-reserve deposit of $2,410,000 and a proposed sewer-infrastructure deposit of $600,000 paid from user fees. Paul told the council that the deposit package would raise planned deposits by $250,000 overall and that "of that $160 would be the increase on your tax rate, which is roughly 3¢." He estimated an overall municipal tax-rate projection of $4.63 under the budget the council moved forward.

Why it matters: the council’s vote moves the numbers to the next formal step in the budget process and frames the public hearing and deliberative-session debate. The presentation highlighted growing capital and operating costs—chief among them fire apparatus, solid-waste equipment and bridge construction—that help explain proposed increases and the council’s choices about what to fund from reserves.

Key capital and reserve details: Paul said he trimmed several line items from the manager’s December proposal (athletic fields and playground equipment to $5,000 each; Daniel Webster Highway capital reserve to $75,000) and left proposed increases for fire equipment and sewer infrastructure. He noted that fire trucks that cost about $650,000 several years ago are approaching $875,000 now; a ladder truck delivered this year cost roughly $220,000 on arrival though the order price had been about $150,000 years earlier. Solid-waste equipment increases were attributed to a worn tractor; Paul said he was asking the council for roughly $2,410,000 in general-fund capital-reserve deposits and $600,000 for sewer infrastructure (paid by user fees). He told the council the sewer deposit “does not affect the tax rate.”

Fund balance and media fund: Paul reviewed the cable/media franchise fund and warned of a multi-year drawdown if franchise revenue stays level: he projected roughly $130,000 in that fund at the end of the 2025–26 fiscal year and said the fund could run out by 2027–28 without new revenues. He also reiterated the council’s policy goal of using fund balance conservatively—both for tax-rate smoothing and one-time capital needs—and said the council has targeted a general-fund balance near 8% of appropriations.

Fire overtime, staffing options and tax impacts: Much of the meeting centered on rising overtime in public safety. Paul and Fire Department leaders described a multiyear increase in overtime driven by vacancies, workers’ compensation, short-term disability and higher call volumes in certain periods. The town manager and council reviewed scenarios the chief requested: staffing to 12 firefighters per shift (adding one person per shift), keeping the current staffing approach (staff to 11 and use overtime as needed), or instructing staff to drop to 10 on shifts when vacancies occur and limit overtime.

Paul presented the fiscal impact scenarios the town reviewed: hiring one firefighter per shift to staff to 12 would cost roughly an additional 8¢ on the municipal tax rate, which Paul described as about $40 a year for a $500,000 house using his example. He also presented models for operating at 11 and dropping to 10 during vacancies, and the estimated overtime lines the town used in its scenarios. Fire Department leaders emphasized that staffing and scheduling are constrained by collective-bargaining agreements and by the operational realities of a 24-hour shift schedule—"you don't have an effective team to manage an incident with only 2 people," the fire chief said—so any change in staffing policy also interacts with contract terms and operational safety.

Ambulance billing and revenue options: Councilors and staff discussed increasing ambulance fees to generate revenue to offset staffing costs. Paul presented sample billing adjustments tied to Medicare reimbursement levels: Merrimack’s current Medicare-based billing was shown alongside possible increases such as "Medicare plus 75%" and other multipliers. The council asked for more detail from the town’s billing agent and welfare staff about collections, write-offs and hardship abatements. Pat from welfare explained the hardship review and the appeals process when insurers pay a customary amount but not the town’s billed charge. Paul and the deputy finance director said Medicare payments typically cover a portion of billed ambulance charges (the deputy finance director said Medicare pays approximately 40%, with roughly 20% billed to secondary insurance or the patient and an estimated 40% written off in some cases), and the council asked staff to return with more precise local data before any fee change.

Council direction and next steps: After discussion, the council agreed to move the budget and the capital-reserve warrant articles to the Feb. 13 public hearing. Members also asked staff to return with more detailed ambulance-revenue scenarios and to provide a quarterly "purchasing-power" or overtime-monitoring report so the council can track overtime plus associated salary savings (vacancy savings) in a single, regularly updated display. That monitoring report will be used in quarterly financial reviews and to give the fire chief earlier signals if overtime projected run rates are trending outside targets.

Votes at a glance: - Motion to take the previously tabled issuance-of-debt item off the table (motion by Nancy Harrington; second by Nancy Murphy) — adopted (ayes recorded; formal tally: yes 7, no 0, abstain 0). - Move general-fund capital-reserve deposit ($2,410,000) to Feb. 13 public hearing (motion by Nancy Murphy; second by Jennifer) — adopted (yes 7, no 0, abstain 0). - Move wastewater capital-reserve deposit ($600,000) to Feb. 13 public hearing (moved and seconded) — adopted (yes 7, no 0, abstain 0). - Move town budget ($42,909,979) and associated adjustments to Feb. 13 public hearing (motion by Mackenzie; second by Andy) — adopted (yes 7, no 0, abstain 0). (Individual roll-call votes were not read into the record; tallies above reflect the council’s recorded affirmative counts.)

What councilors asked staff to provide: more detailed ambulance-billing and collections data (in-town vs. out-of-town transports, Medicare vs. private insurer shares, write-off rates); a monthly or quarterly overtime and salary-savings (vacancy) purchasing-power report; and clearer bridge-costs estimates from the state DOT before finalizing related capital-reserve decisions.

Ending note: Councilors said they will continue deliberations before the Feb. 13 public hearing and asked members of the public who need emergency medical transport to call 911 regardless of billing concerns—"If you need us, we're here," a councilor quoted the chief as saying. The public hearing will be the next formal opportunity for public comment on the budget and warrant articles.