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Resident urges transparency after $7,000 health‑service cut and questions legal fees
Summary
Resident Lynn Calloway told the Select Board the removal of $7,000 for health and welfare services risks degrading town services and asked for a breakdown of cuts and justification for hiring the Mitchell Group without an RFP; she cited budget documents showing high legal fees.
During public input, Lynn Calloway of Meeting Road asked the board to explain why $7,000 for health and welfare services was removed from the budget and requested transparency about where cuts were made and where funds were reallocated.
Calloway reviewed budget committee documents and told the board she found line‑items and totals she said merited explanation, including a budget line totaling $68,665 for legal fees and expenditures to date of $13,170.54. "If the board has been unable to find $7,000, there may be a couple of possible remedies," she told the board, and she asked whether surplus legal funds could be repurposed to restore services.
She also questioned why the board had engaged the Mitchell Group for legal work without competitive bids and asked whether the board had followed the town's procurement policy. Board members replied that some legal fees fall below RFP thresholds, and one member said past legal spending had been higher in prior years; members agreed to look up the relevant minutes and documentation and to explain the rationale at a future meeting.
The board took no formal action at the time beyond acknowledging the request for documentation and agreeing to follow up in a subsequent meeting.
