Brentwood select board trims $319,631 from proposed budget, approves line-by-line reductions

Brentwood Select Board members and the Budget Committee approved a package of targeted reductions totaling $319,631 at a joint meeting, moving the town's proposed operating budget down from a first-pass figure of $7,146,674 to $6,827,043.

The board voted line-by-line through 26 modified budget items after Select Board member Jennifer said the cuts were intended to shrink a projected tax increase while retaining operational reserves. "We tried to leave a buffer," Jennifer said, explaining that the board deliberately did not cut every available dollar so the town would have room for unexpected expenses such as weather or equipment failure.

Why it matters: the package reduces the preliminary increase the board had forecast, lowers several departmental requests and formalizes how the town will use reserves, impact fees and some ARPA allocations. Many of the shifts affect public-safety staffing and equipment lines and town finance operations.

Most important votes and outcomes

The meeting produced a long series of motions and roll-call votes for individual budget lines rather than a single omnibus approval. Highlights include:

- Executive Office: Approved $20,905 (passed, roll call ayes by members on record). - Town Administrator: Approved $121,942 (passed). - Town Clerk (Daphne): Approved $93,839 (passed). - Election: Approved $6,552 (passed). - Tax Collector: Approved $94,938 (passed). - Finance (including bringing reconciliation in-house / treasurer salary): Approved $125,790 (passed). - Budget Committee: Approved $67 (passed). - Legal services / engineering: Approved $34,002 (passed). - Planning Board: Approved $114,707 (passed); board discussed routing unspent master-plan funds into a capital reserve fund (CRF) and a planned warrant to start that CRF. - Zoning Board of Adjustment (ZBA): Approved $404 (passed). - Government buildings: Approved $82,302 (passed). - Cemetery: Approved $13,740 (passed). - General government (communications, grant-writer allocation, office lines): Approved $111,826 (passed). - Grant writer line (townwide grant coordinator): Approved (amount discussed and left at an amended line; final recorded line in packet noted as $40,000) (passed). - Police department: Approved $1,400,987 (passed); police reduced part-time and overtime assumptions to reflect fuller staffing. - Fire department: Approved $1,255,641 (passed); department trimmed overtime, training and equipment purchase lines but remains the largest increase in the budget package. - Joint loss management: Approved as amended (passed). - Emergency management: Approved $4,627 (passed). - Mosquito control (contract): Approved $29,200 (passed). - Highway (operations): Approved $812,637 (passed). - Snow & ice control: Approved $96,784 (passed); board relied on an encumbrance from current-year salt/sand contract as a buffer. - Recycling: Approved $99,421 (passed); balance of ARPA was allocated across recycling in coming years. - Welfare (direct assistance): Approved $18,907 (passed). - Debt service (use of impact fees): Approved $215,100 (passed).

Taken together, those cuts reduced the projected percent change on the town bottom line from just under 14% down to about 8.39% under the revised figures presented during the meeting.

Discussion notes

- Staffing and salaries: Select Board members debated limiting employee salary increases to a 2.5% Social Security COLA-like number, but the board declined a broad across-the-board rollback after members said previous years' increases were intended to bring town pay scales into market alignment. The board left some individual salary lines (for example, the town clerk and certain long-serving positions) at higher levels.

- Finance and reconciliation: The board agreed to bring reconciliation duties in-house for one year, increasing the treasurer salary to $32,000 and eliminating an outsourced reconciliation contract; Select Board members said the change is a one-year "stopgap" while accounting software and internal processes are updated.

- Fire department and succession: Members had an extended discussion about fire staffing and a planned deputy position intended to provide succession if Chief Byrd retires; the select board kept the position in the operating budget rather than placing it on a warrant because they described the need as emergent. Board members and the chief also discussed replacement cycles for protective gear and possible use of capital reserve funds (CRFs) or ARPA funds for PFAS-free gear.

- Encumbrances and legal timing: A resident raised a question about RSA 32:7 and whether encumbrances must be set before fiscal-year end. Board members said they were following prior practice where some encumbrances were carried forward into January and agreed to confirm the practice with counsel; they left the approved numbers in place but said they would reopen budgets if legal review required.

Votes at a glance (formal actions recorded)

The meeting recorded roll-call outcomes for each budget motion. Where the roll call was read as "Jennifer: Aye; Kat: Aye; Gabby: Aye; [speaker noting] I'm an aye; Jack: I'm an aye," the article records all five members present voting yes. Where a member explicitly abstained (for the Dec. 16 minutes), that abstention is recorded below.

- Approve minutes (Dec. 16): Approved as amended; recorded roll call includes an abstention by Gabby (absent at that meeting) and a majority of present votes in favor (outcome: approved). - Approve minutes (Dec. 9) as amended: Approved (outcome: approved). - Approve Executive Office budget, $20,905: Approved (outcome: approved). - Approve Town Administrator budget, $121,942: Approved. - Approve Town Clerk budgets (combined), $93,839: Approved. - Approve Election budget, $6,552: Approved. - Approve Tax Collector budget, $94,938: Approved. - Approve Finance budget (including treasurer salary), $125,790: Approved. - Approve Budget Committee budget, $67: Approved. - Approve Legal budget, $34,002: Approved. - Approve Planning Board budget, $114,707: Approved; board discussed use of unspent funds to seed a master-plan CRF. - Approve ZBA budget, $404: Approved. - Approve Government Buildings budget, $82,302: Approved. - Approve Cemetery budget, $13,740: Approved. - Approve General Government budget, $111,826: Approved. - Approve Grant Writer line (townwide coordinator): Approved (final packet entry noted in discussion as $40,000); Approved. - Approve Police Department budget, $1,400,987: Approved. - Approve Fire Department budget, $1,255,641: Approved. - Approve Joint Loss Management: Approved. - Approve Emergency Management budget, $4,627: Approved. - Approve Mosquito Control contract, $29,200: Approved. - Approve Highway budget, $812,637: Approved. - Approve Snow & Ice Control budget, $96,784: Approved. - Approve Recycling budget, $99,421: Approved. - Approve Welfare budget, $18,907: Approved. - Approve Debt Service (use of impact fees), $215,100: Approved.

What didn't change at the meeting

The board postponed final action on the school warrants until a later meeting because a member needed to leave and the group would not have a quorum to complete that vote. The board scheduled a follow-up meeting for Jan. 27 to consider school items and to follow up on any encumbrance legal clarifications.

Ending

The select board said the cuts were intended to balance taxpayer impacts and operational readiness. Jennifer summarized the board's intent: "We were trying to make as hefty a cut as we could while still leaving us a little bit of wiggle room," she said. The board adjourned after completing the line-by-line votes and scheduling a follow-up to finish school warrant business.