Leicester board debates ‘no pay, no services’ approach as Salisbury weighs payment to mosquito district

Leicester selectboard members spent an extended portion of the meeting debating how the OCW mosquito district should respond if Salisbury declines to pay an outstanding bill, with one member urging a hard line: “no pay, no services, and no vote.” The board heard that Salisbury had not made a final decision; representatives at OCW would meet next week and the district may need direction from Leicester on whether to withhold services until accounts are current.

Committee member (S7) told the board that withholding services and voting privileges is an available option under the district’s bylaws, and argued it would protect the district’s fiscal position. Other board members questioned whether denying services would effectively overturn Salisbury voters’ prior choices about adulticide spraying and risk breaking informal agreements with donors. Resident (S4) said the “no pay” option felt like a covert way to remove adulticide from the town and warned it would be unfair to voters who had requested the service. The board noted the bylaws use the word “may” regarding penalties for nonpayment, signaling discretionary enforcement rather than an automatic sanction.

Members also discussed practical consequences: if Salisbury later pays, the district could require repayment of back amounts before restoring service or access, and the board must weigh operational impacts such as rerouting spray runs and potential extra costs in a bad spraying year. The discussion included repeated references to ongoing negotiations: board members said Jeff Schumann (OCW representative) had been engaging with Salisbury’s select board and would report back after the next local meeting. The Leicester board deferred final direction until OCW received Salisbury’s formal decision and the district board met to consider options.