According to the association of town finance committee handbook, there is no emergency reserve fund, only a reserve fund for extraordinary and unforeseen expenditures, Other uses of the fund require budgetary transfers by town meeting. Massachusetts General Law, chapter 40, section 6 also notes it is a reserve fund, no mention of emergency in name or for use.
Templeton advisory committee has posted on their webpage that unforeseen is unexpected, unanticipated, not able to be predicted at the time the budget was set, which is at town meeting.
Also posted there is extraordinary as beyond what is usual, ordinary, regular, or established; a cost not arising from normal activities. No where is the word emergency used.
In a Community where we have 72 miles of road, where many of these roads have not been maintained over the years, I find it hard to believe that a collapsed culvert could be classified as extraordinary or unforseen. In my way of looking at this situation, this is maintenance. A fire truck, with a blown engine or other piece of equipment would be unforseen.
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