Charlemont assessors say Great River Hydro will not provide 38D/38F data to office without confidentiality agreement

At its Aug. 5 meeting the Charlemont Board of Assessors was told that Great River Hydro (GRH) declined to provide the assessor's office with requested 38D/38F information unless the town signs a confidentiality agreement.

Assessor's Clerk Carlene Hayden told the board that the Select Board and Town Counsel negotiated a draft confidentiality agreement but GRH rejected Town Counsel's suggested edits. Hayden said GRH has provided the requested 38D/38F material to the assessor's consultant, Matthew Sansoucy, rather than directly to the assessor's office.

Why it matters: 38D/38F information was described at the meeting as relevant to the assessor's work; whether providing the material to a consultant satisfies the town's compliance obligations depends on guidance from DLS. Hayden said she will check with DLS to determine if the consultant's receipt of the materials meets the department's requirements.

The Select Board's draft and GRH's response were discussed but not signed at the Assessor's meeting. Hayden reported the sequence of events to the board and recommended confirming DLS's position before taking further steps. No formal motion or vote on the confidentiality agreement was recorded at the meeting.

The board asked Hayden to follow up with DLS; the meeting record shows she will report back to the board after consulting DLS about whether the consultant's receipt of the materials satisfies the 38D/38F information request requirements.