Templeton advisory committee backs joint meeting on water, sewer and light billing; asks for list of staff with line-of-credit access

The Templeton Advisory Committee voted to ask the select board to place a joint meeting of the water, sewer and light departments on its agenda to explore consolidating billing and administrative systems. Members said combining water and sewer on a single statement could reduce unpaid sewer balances — the sewer account was described in discussion as being in the red by roughly $153,000 — and would reduce postage and administrative overhead.

A motion (moved and seconded) asked April to draft a letter to the select board requesting the joint meeting; the committee approved the motion by roll-call. Members said they want the town administrator and department leaders to examine whether one billing system, consolidated computer systems, or shared collections practices could improve efficiency and collections.

Separately, the committee identified three credit instruments in use: an American Express card and two Capital One products — one characterized in the meeting as a line of credit with a local vendor and one an Amazon purchasing arrangement. Committee members said those arrangements may not align with current purchasing and credit-card policies and that multiple open lines of credit increase the risk of unmonitored spending. The advisory committee passed a motion requesting, through the town administrator, a formal list of individuals who have access to the two lines of credit and recommended that the select board and town administrator update policy so lines of credit follow the same controls as credit-card use.

Members emphasized that purchases should be reviewed in advance where possible and that the town administrator should supervise company cards and lines of credit, with clearer dollar limits and approval workflows. The committee deferred a more comprehensive purchasing-policy rewrite to the January agenda.