Selectmen review water and sewer finances, decide to keep rates unchanged and seek better deposit returns

Finance Administrator Kelly Heon presented year-end fund balances for the water and sewer operations and recommended no rate change for 2026.

Heon told the board that the Water Department’s receivables across the 2025 billings totaled about $211,146 and that the Water Department owed the Town roughly $148,260 (a substantial recovery from prior years). "So, the good news is total assets are greater than total liabilities for the Water Dept. as of the end of 2025," she said.

By contrast, Heon said the Sewer Department still had a larger outstanding position: combined sewer receivables and septage owed were roughly $368,799 while liabilities totaled about $506,000, leaving an approximate shortfall of $138,000. He recommended keeping the current water rate of $7 and the sewer rate of $15 for 2026, citing that recent rate increases are reducing arrears and usage appears to have leveled.

The board approved a motion instructing Heon to research moving a $325,000 sewer account into higher-yield short-term instruments and to return with quoted terms (3-, 6- and 12-month instruments) and recommendations. "If the 6 months is really no different than a one year you might go 6 months but if it's significantly different, we might go one year," Selectman Charlie King said during discussion. The motion to pursue investment options passed 5-0.

Selectmen deferred any rate-change action; staff plans to present public-facing materials and to allow the Budget Committee and residents to review the analysis at the upcoming hearings.

Next steps: Heon will collect deposit-rate options and term recommendations and present them to the board; staff will post the rates discussion to the town website and prepare a Budget Committee briefing.