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Clerk and elections officials outline higher ballot costs and online payment plans
Summary
Clerk and elections staff told the budget committee they face higher contracted printing costs for ballots after their prior vendor closed, and described steps to reduce printing expense and add online payments for taxes and fees.
Len Osgood, town clerk and tax collector, and the elections official described operational changes and expense pressures at the Jan. 20 Budget Committee meeting.
Osgood said the clerk’s office trimmed non‑salary spending by more than 25% this year after consolidating vendors and completing a records‑digitization push; the office absorbed some salary increases tied to a new union contract and staff buyouts but has reduced printing and supply costs. He said vital records have been scanned and that digitization has greatly improved customer service.
On elections, the elections official, Lynn, said a longtime ballot‑printer went out of business, causing a jump in contracted ballot printing and programming to an estimated $30,000 this coming year (up from roughly $26,000), driven in part by uncertainty about ballot length. Lynn outlined steps the office is taking to reduce printing pages (printing the voter guide separately, adding QR access to ordinance text) and described staffing needs for two multi‑district elections in the fiscal year, noting about 12–20 temporary election workers will be needed at times and that some seasonal overtime is typical.
The committee heard that the town is migrating payments and permitting to new software (Tyler/Cassell and OpenGov) and that Express Bill Pay integration is expected to allow real‑estate and personal‑property tax payments online — a change officials said should reduce in‑person traffic and printing over time.
What happens next: Committee members asked for more detail on contract pricing, historic spending and the estimated volume of temporary election workers; staff said they would circulate prior‑year contract expenditures and continue planning for online payment rollout.
