Select Board, Advisory Committee approve FY2026 year-end budget transfers to cover multiple deficits

Town Accountant Beth Mosley presented final year-end budget transfers intended to close multiple FY2026 deficits, including the water bill, police overtime, fire overtime, snow and ice, unemployment, and Medicare tax. Mosley proposed using the town’s reserve fund, a portion of the available health insurance balance, and amortizing the remaining snow-and-ice deficit over three years to avoid a single-year hit to the operating budget. "Motion by Select Member Grady to Approve the FY2026 Year End Budget Transfers as presented," was recorded and the action passed unanimously.

Advisory Committee members asked detailed questions about the risks of drawing down the reserve and the mechanics of amortizing the snow-and-ice shortfall. Chair David Farrag and Vice Chair Ellen Maher questioned the drivers of police overtime; Chief Quigley attributed overtime to staff shortages and minimum manning requirements. The Select Board and Advisory Committee each cast unanimous votes in favor of the transfers; the transcript records the Advisory Committee role-call and the Select Board approval as 5-0-0 — PASSED. The board did not specify dollar totals for each deficit in the meeting minutes beyond noting affected lines; Mosley’s plan to amortize snow-and-ice expense will spread the remaining cost over three years.