Wolfeboro Select Board adopts ethics code, committee assignments and procedural updates

The Wolfeboro Select Board approved a package of procedural updates and committee appointments at a special meeting April 22, 2026, voting unanimously on several motions that the board’s leaders said are intended to improve transparency and clarify responsibilities.

The board voted 5-0 to adopt a Code of Ethics that Select Board member Linda Murray said she helped draft. Murray told the board the document “covered what was needed” and recommended only wording tweaks; the board agreed to attach a New Hampshire Municipal Association (NHMA) meeting flowchart to clarify when to trigger a vote.

The board also approved the 2026-27 committee assignments as amended. Select Board member Brian Deshaies will join the Abenaki bike trails committee to replace John Thurston, who the board said cannot attend daytime meetings. Deshaies moved to approve the committee list; Select Board member Dave Senecal seconded the motion, which passed 5-0.

Members approved a Municipal Committee Chair Guide (draft 4-22-26) that replaces the term "board of selectmen" with "Select Board" and sets expectations for committee minutes and reporting. Chair Paul O’Brien said minutes should be made available promptly: “Minutes should be within five business days – but not a month,” he said.

During a page-by-page review of the Select Board Rules of Procedure, members discussed curbing meeting interruptions, discouraging use of electronic devices by board members during meetings and clarifying how board members share information. Linda Murray said electronic messages sent to a board member during a meeting can create transparency problems and recommended stronger guidance about information distribution.

The board moved to make the Milfoil Committee and the Wolfeboro Waters Committee standing committees; Select Board member Brian Deshaies made the motion, Chair Paul O’Brien seconded it and the motion passed 5-0.

Votes at a glance

• Approve Select Board 2026-27 committee assignments as amended — Motion: Brian Deshaies; Second: Dave Senecal; Outcome: Approved 5-0 (see timeline: motion recorded beginning SEG 030). • Approve Code of Ethics with NHMA meeting flowchart — Motion: Linda Murray; Second: Brian Deshaies; Outcome: Approved 5-0 (SEG 052–053). • Approve Municipal Committee Chair Guide (draft 4-22-26) — Motion: Brian Deshaies; Second: Dave Senecal; Outcome: Approved 5-0 (SEG 068–069). • Move Milfoil and Wolfeboro Waters Committees to standing committees — Motion: Brian Deshaies; Second: Paul O’Brien; Outcome: Approved 5-0 (SEG 083–084).

The meeting agenda included a non-public session item under RSA 91-A. Interim Town Manager Barry Muccio identified the legal basis for non-public deliberations as RSA 91-A during the meeting’s opening. The board later voted 5-0 to adjourn into non-public session at 8:00 PM; the transcript records subsequent non-public motions to seal minutes and to adjourn the non-public session but does not specify movers or seconds for those items.

The board noted several procedural clarifications to be attached to guides and packets, including: attaching the NHMA meeting flowchart to the Code of Ethics, providing committee packets in advance, and a recommended timeline that committee minutes be posted within five business days. The board set its regular meeting times to 6–9 PM and instructed that agenda items not completed within that window move to the next meeting.

The board set its next regular meeting for May 6, 2026 at 6:00 PM.