Sanbornton Selectmen review FY26 budget, sign $616,115 school payment and flag overtime overages

The Sanbornton Board of Selectmen met May 27 in an out-of-sequence session to review the town’s FY26 budget, sign a $616,115 payment to the Winnisquam Regional School District and set deadlines for encumbrance decisions ahead of the next fiscal year.

Town Administrator Trish Stafford said she has not yet met with Highway Department Director Johnny Van Tassel to review his budget and noted that the retirement expenditure lines are displaying incorrectly on reports even though deductions have been taken. Stafford also reported some savings tied to employee health-insurance payouts, which are processed in December, and said she would check the Life Insurance figure and other line items for accuracy.

Selectman Brandon Deacon, the board chair, said he will follow up with the highway director about overspent lines for hired trucking and repairs and maintenance and will check whether bridge funds will be spent this year. Selectman Ralph Carter urged using the Highway Block grant for current road projects rather than the Capital Reserve Fund because the grant money lapses if not used; Carter also raised concerns about prior-year encumbrances that the town’s prior finance employee did not handle appropriately.

Fire Chief Paul Dexter reported the Fire Department is on track to be about $30,000 over budget due mainly to overtime. Selectman Mark Brown noted that moving to 24-hour shifts increases overtime exposure when shifts must be covered; the board heard that training and the requirement that multiple certified personnel respond to certain calls have pushed costs higher. Chief Dexter has paused nonessential spending in response to the overrun.

The board discussed the Transfer Station role and overtime use. Deacon said overtime should be for unforeseen circumstances and questioned whether the position has evolved into work that would better fit a salaried classification; Stafford said she was unsure the role would meet salaried requirements. Board members noted subcontracting General Assistance to the Partnership for Public Health has produced substantial savings.

Staff flagged several apparent anomalies in the financial records: a Police office-supplies line that appears incorrect, a double-entered line for Moulton’s Band that Stafford said she will fix, and a question about whether the library roof project has been accounted for in the custodial-services line. Selectman Brown asked whether the Finance Coordinator position had been posted on Indeed; Stafford said she would post the job now that the town’s new credit card is active and that she is seeking a part-time bookkeeper while the Finance Clerk is out.

Selectmen identified potential underspent lines in the Planning Board budget (legal and recording-secretary accounts) that could fund a purchase of Plan-It software or poll pads. They also discussed paying an anticipated $6,000 subdivision expense for the Town Park from ARPA funds or, if ARPA funds are insufficient, from the Capital Reserve Fund. The board set June 17 as the date by which department heads should decide which funds to encumber for the next fiscal year; the next regular meeting is June 3 at 5:00 p.m. with a workshop at 4:00 p.m.

No formal votes on budget amendments were recorded at the May 27 session; the board’s immediate actions were the signed payment to Winnisquam Regional School District, staff follow-ups on suspected bookkeeping errors and line-item clarifications, and the instruction that department heads prepare encumbrance decisions for the June 17 meeting.