Massachusetts has an item called the Open Meeting Law, which is covered under MA general law chapter 30A, §§ 18-25, and accompanying regulations, 940 Code of Mass. Regs. 29.00, provide the public with a right of access to the meetings of a large number of public bodies at the state and local level. It is important to have these laws / regulations, which results in a way for residents to ty and hold their elected and appointed representatives accountable. When residents use these laws and regulations, it is not a burden, unfair or costly means, it is part of our system of governance that we have in place. When I hear an elected or appointed official comment or complain about an open meeting law complaint being a burden to taxpayers or a reference to increased legal cost to taxpayers, as if a resident or person should not use the process put in place by other elected officials. All elected or appointed persons should remember that the people supply the money elected people spend, so in the end, when a person files an open meeting law complaint, they are also approving the spending of their money to bring forward and have discussion on said complaint.

 

Templeton Police Department manning level and budget past 5 years plus 2010, 2012, 2014.

 

Fiscal Year	Chief	Officers	Budget
2010	1	9 FT / 7 PT	$833,995.00
2012	1	9 FT / 6 PT	$833,588.00
2014	1	9 FT / 7 PT	$822,055.00
2017	1	8 FT / 10 PT	$859,460.00
2018	1	8 FT / 9 PT	$1,303,000.00 – police & dispatch
2019	1	10 FT / 9 PT	$1,354,750.00     police / dispatch
2020	1	8 FT / 9 PT	$1,388,570.00 -   police / dispatch
2021	1	8 FT / 9 PT	$1,465,015.00 -   police / dispatch
2022	1	8 FT / 9 PT	$1,432,350.00 -   police / dispatch
2023	1	8 FT / 7 PT	$1,442,950.00 -   police & dispatch

 

 

Fire Department expenses

Fiscal Year	Personnel	Support	Services	Supplies	Other
2022	$644,000.00	$52,500.00	$100,000.00	$42,500.00	$148,500.00
2023	$712,000.00	$53,000.00	$  36,850.00	$11,000.00	$  92,500.00

 

FY 2023 Ambulance expense = $   290,250.00

               Fire expense             = $   905,350.00

Total Fire / EMS                     = $1,195,900.00

 MA Worcester county register of deeds.

Community Preservation Act Fee Increase

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Fiscal Year 2020 budget included a provision aimed at increasing funds available to towns and cities through the Community Preservation Act (CPA). The new fee schedule is shown in the table below.

Fees

Recording fees are now the same whether you own Recorded Land or Registered Land. Most property is Recorded Land. If the document you wish to record refers to a “Book and Page” number, you probably have Recorded Land. If your document refers to a “Certificate of Title” number, you probably have Registered Land.

Please Note:

• The Registry accepts only cash or checks for recording transactions
• Please make all checks payable to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
• Telephone numbers and addresses must be on all checks
• Document recording fees must be in the exact amount and total due should be paid with one check or cash
• Identification must be presented

Document	Fee
Declaration of Homestead	$35
Declaration of Trust	$255
Deed	$155
Mortgage	$205
Mortgage Foreclosure Deed & Affidavit	$155
Mortgage Discharge, Release or Partial Release	$105
Municipal Lien Certificate	$80
UCC Documents (up to 2 debtors)	$75
Federal Tax Liens (and related documents)	$5
Plans (per sheet)	$105
All other documents	$105
Certified Copies (per page)	$1

 Ask DLS: Snow and Ice Removal

How do communities budget for snow and ice removal during a particularly snowy winter?
 
G.L. c. 44, § 31D authorizes a city or town, under certain conditions, to spend in excess of its available appropriation for the costs of snow and ice removal. The rationale for the exception to the general rule of G.L. c. 44, § 31 that departments cannot incur liabilities in excess of appropriation is that some of the costs of snow and ice removal are extremely variable from one year to the next, depending upon the weather, and are impossible to budget for accurately. Typically, the sorts of costs that would vary unpredictably with the weather would be overtime costs for internal plowing crews, the cost of sand and chemicals to be spread on the roads, and the cost of hiring plows and drivers during storms. On the other hand, expenses for regular, recurring departmental activities that are predictable and do not vary with the weather in any given winter cannot be paid for by deficit spending. Municipalities must budget for such planned and regular expenses. Authority to deficit spend on snow and ice removal is contingent on the amount of the current year’s appropriation equaling or exceeding the prior year’s appropriation.

What are examples of expenditures that vary with the weather?

The repair or replacement of a snowplow blade, or the repair of a transmission on a snowplow truck could qualify as costs of snow and ice removal if the blade were damaged or the transmission failed during the snow-plowing season. Another allowable expenditure would be the cost of fuel for snow and ice removal. The deficit spending must be directly related to the removal of the snow and ice, and it must be an expense that the municipality could not have realistically budgeted for.

Would the regular maintenance of DPW equipment or other municipal vehicles be an allowable expenditure under G.L. c. 44, § 31D?

No. The cost of snow tires for police and fire vehicles, or regular maintenance of DPW vehicles that are used year-round cannot properly be charged as costs of snow removal. The same is true for the purchase of radios for the trucks used in plowing; their acquisition is a fixed one-time cost that does not vary with the amount of snow that falls in a winter. Scheduled maintenance or repair of such equipment, or even the emergency repair or replacement of equipment damaged in operations having nothing to do with snow plowing, could not be funded as a deficit in the snow and ice account.

Street and drain cleaning activities regularly and typically performed every year must be paid for with budgeted funds, but if unusual weather conditions result in extraordinary cleaning activities, those costs could also possibly qualify for deficit spending. G.L. c. 44, § 31D authorizes, under certain conditions, deficit spending only for those expenses directly related to the removal of snow and ice that are variable from year to year depending on the severity of the winter.

What are some of the allowable expenditures of a particular snow and ice removal line-item if a municipality is not deficit spending under G.L. c. 44, § 31D?

The scope of the appropriation is for local officials to determine. Municipalities are entitled to expend from the appropriation for purposes within the scope of that appropriation.

 There is a booklet, titled Veterans' laws and benefits, it is a booklet every Veteran should get their hands on.

One item, page 19 & 20, Outreach, Counseling and Trama resources. One such center is located in Gardner, MA, at 268 Central Street, Gardner, MA 01440 - telephone 978-632-9601.

These centers provide a number of services and help to veterans and these outreach services are available to all veterans, you do not have to meet the states "veteran" definition under MGL chapter 4, section 7 clause 43. (yeah, the government always makes it hard to use things you have been told and / or signed paperwork that states you have earned these things) If you are a veteran and you go to say, town hall, to meet with town veteran service officer and they are nowhere to be found, the above outreach center is a place you can go or call to get help, assistance, information and knowledge, you really did earn these things.

 

When town government, as in selectmen, need or want money for a project, they usually ask town meeting for an appropriation. When that appropriation falls short, as in, is not enough for any number of reasons, what can be done?

One answer comes from the MA department of revenue / division of local services.

This month's Ask DLS features frequently asked questions concerning appropriation transfers. Please let us know if you have other areas of interest or send a question to cityandtown@dor.state.ma.us. We would like to hear from you.

How does a municipality determine the amount available for a transfer?

The amount of any appropriation available to be used as a financing source for another appropriation is the unspent and unencumbered balance, i.e., the amount after all potential liabilities to be charged to the appropriation are considered. Accounting officers should determine this amount before any transfer from an appropriation is approved.

Are there special rules if the transfer is being made from surplus bond proceeds or a restricted fund?

Yes. Transfers from surplus bond proceeds after a project that was financed by borrowing has been completed or abandoned may only be made in the manner and for the purposes set forth in G.L. c. 44, § 20. Transfers from appropriations financed by other restricted sources, e.g., stabilization, enterprise, water surplus or community preservation funds, are subject to the same statutory restrictions as the original appropriations.

What is the appropriation transfer process for towns?

At any time during the fiscal year, a town meeting may by majority vote transfer any amount from any appropriation to any other municipal use authorized by law. During May and June, and the first 15 days of July of the new fiscal year, the selectboard, with the agreement of the finance committee, may transfer any amount from a departmental or other appropriation to any other appropriation. This procedure may not be used, however, to transfer funds from a municipal light or school department budget. An end-of-year transfer using this alternative procedure requires a majority vote of the selectboard and a majority vote of the finance committee. Any end-of-year transfer from the municipal light or school department budget requires town meeting approval.

Of course, there is always that big pile of money to light up the eyes of government employees - ARPA, but what about the people who worked hard, to provide the funds to operate the government, what do they get? Plenty of money sitting on books un-used to increase any appropriation that has come up short to get the original project completed and in a timely manner.

 From the Advisory Committee handbook, also known as the Association of Town Finance Committee Handbook.

The Budget Process An effective budget process begins with a clear understanding of who will be responsible for the essential budget activities:

• issuing budget guidelines.

• preparing budget requests;

• assembling requests into a comprehensive budget for review; and

• reviewing, analyzing, and recommending a budget to town meeting.

Statutory responsibilities, town bylaws, and the town’s organizational structure dictate, or at least influence, who is responsible for each of these activities. In general, the executive branch of town government should be responsible for the first three budget development activities. The finance committee should focus on the last of these four activities.

. Unless required by town charter or bylaws, however, it is not advisable for the finance committee to take on the budget-making role directly. Such a role usurps some of the powers and responsibilities of elected officials and their appointees and compromises the committee’s primary statutory role as objective advisor to town meeting. In addition, this process can be a daunting task for a volunteer committee, particularly without the help of a professional in the town’s administration, such as the town accountant.

Budget Formats There is a common misconception that the Commonwealth prescribes a mandatory budget format for towns. There is no such requirement; therefore, no two town budget documents are alike. The Division of Local Services of the Department of Revenue, however, has determined that towns may rely for guidance upon M.G.L. Ch. 44 s 32, which sets forth the budget format for cities