Approved Minutes of the Budget Advisory Committee (BAC)

Temple Town Hall

July 23, 2024

Members present                                                                              Others present

Steve Andersen            Brian Kullgren                                                  Ted Petro (select board)

Rae Barnhisel               Chris Nolte                                                       Mary Nutting

Charlene Eddy              Paul Quinn

Meeting called to order at 7:05 pm

A. Minutes

July 9, 2024 meeting minutes approved as amended.

B. Ongoing business

1. Members discussed the budget timeline (see working draft attached) and suggested a cover letter explaining which deadlines were those of DRA and which deadlines were being requested by the BAC (see draft attached).

The BAC identified various departments heads that the BAC and select board would meet with in their joint meetings: 1) Administrative assistant, 2) Highway road agent, 3) Police chief, 4) Fire engineers, 5) Animal control officer, 6) Tax collector, 7) Town Clerk, 8) Ambulance officer, and 9) Librarian/Library trustees. Other individuals in charge of budgets could be interviewed as time permits or as questions arise: those in charge of Recreation, Patriotic Purposes, as well as the Building Inspector, Health officer, Town Forester.

There was discussion of how some employees/officials are categorized within the town budget. The Health Officer is included under Welfare Administration and the Town Forester under Public Facilities. The BAC will address improvements to the budget, accounting procedures, and code enforcements at a later date.

2. Andersen and Eddy reported that they attended the select board’s meeting the previous evening and saw that an “Update on the BAC” was on the agenda. They said they were assured by Bruce Kantner, select board chair, that communication, etc. between the boards was going great. Petro and Nutting reported that the select board returned to the BAC agenda item (Andersen and Eddy had departed). Petro reported that the select board reviewed the two letters from the BAC (one was a cover letter with the BAC Mission Statement and List of Recommendations requesting select board feedback and the other was a letter requesting a vendor list of the OHRV and accessories).

The select board’s feedback on the Mission Statement was to change “policy” to “procedure” in mission #2 and add “research monetary requests of warrant articles and/or major purchases” to mission #5. He said the select board had issue with the last 2 recommendations, #5 and #6. He asked that the BAC clarify #5 with perhaps an example and to not expect #6 to happen. Discussion followed on how the BAC would weigh in on monetary decisions presented for the annual meeting and the responsibility that goes along with it: to be able to a) quantify need and b) have sufficient information to make an informed decision. Petro asked BAC members to clarify the request as stated in the second letter. Members agreed that their request was to simply have a list of items that have been donated and that are now owned by the town as a result of the recent OHRV donation. Petro said he would provide the information right away.

3. Petro provided the BAC with a letter from Road Agent Tim Fiske to NHDOT Robert Barry and a letter from Holden Engineering and Surveying, Inc. Thomas P. Levins to Fiske (both attached here). Andersen reported that he has asked Fiske to meet with the BAC at his earliest convenience. Kullgren presented information on precast box culverts 10 x 10 ft. wide to address the West Road structure and said that $8000 has been estimated to be needed to conduct the engineering study. Barnhisel provided copies of the following: the 4/16/03 Planning Board minutes in which Road Agent Fiske presented the dilemma of which bridge to fix and excerpts from the Traffic and Transportation chapter of the Draft Master Plan that address bridges in Temple. Table #3, Temple’s Bridge Inventory lists 4 bridges that need to be addressed: 3 are Functionally Obsolete (not designed or built to carry the current traffic load) and 1 is Structurally Deficient (need of repair/replacement).

4. Quinn reported on information he had gathered regarding the need for a new photocopier. He estimated a new one to be about $10,000. Discussion followed on how to quantify need.

5. Andersen presented information on walk-behind, zero turn sitting, and sulkey-style standing mowers that ranged from $3750 to $4850 (assuming a municipal discount). He suggested that old equipment be sold rather than incur maintenance. Grounds that mowed are the common area, ball fields, and cemetaries with a 48 in. span is needed to get around gravestones. No new trailer would be needed.

Andersen reported that $1400 had just been spent on the current walk-behind mower. Discussion followed on decisions to service equipment when it might be more prudent to sell and purchase new. Petro raised the concern of waiting for equipment to break before initiating a replacement purchase. Barnhisel suggested that service or maintenance records might be an indicator of whether or not to appropriate funds for any item. Kullgren suggested the town get back to having capital reserve accounts and said they were easier on the lower-income resident. It was agreed that the BAC explore the merits of creating capital reserve funds and address how to quantify “need.”

6. Andersen reported that the older police cruiser (Nissan Pathfinder) had just received substantial work from the Peter’s Nissan dealership and that efforts to purchase an extended warranty were underway. The cruiser has about 96,000 miles but may not be eligible for an extension if it has >100,000 miles.

C. New Business

1. Petro reported that an ad hoc committee was forming to begin the Town Hall restoration and he was unsure whether the $5000 appropriated through a 2024 town warrant article (Article 9) was necessary to spend.

2. Barnhisel requested that the BAC submit an update on their activities to the Temple Newsletter (August 20 deadline). Members agreed that she would circulate a draft by email to get comments.

3. Petro reported that the select board had made changes in the 7 employee insurance benefits and were discussing the 3% salary increase policy.

Meeting adjourned at 9:55 pm.

Respectfully submitted,

Rae Barnhisel

Sept. 10, 2024