Salisbury discusses transfer station and paving with 1.07% proposed budget increase
Published: 02-04-2025 12:40 PM |
With a small turnout to match its small budget increase of 1.07%, Salisbury’s budget public hearing featured discussions around street paving and the cost of hauling waste. The town’s total proposed budget is $2,116,713 in comparison to last year’s spending of $1,980,140.84.
The eight residents in attendance engaged in conversation around the budget items seeing increases, notably the $150,000 proposal for street paving under the highway department and the proposed $35,800 increase for the transfer station due to higher costs associated with hauling water, according to town administrator April Rollins.
Regarding the paving proposal, Rollins explained that town officials clarified for residents that the paving money for the highway department remains separate from the town’s annual capital improvements fund.
For the transfer station, she said residents wanted to know why the price of hauling is being increased so much.
“In light of us getting a compactor, they thought it might be due to additional or more tonnage being towed away, but it’s technically because our hauling company increased our costs,” she said. “They are actually sitting at the incinerator for hours. The cost of them sitting there has been put on us to pay.”
The budget also includes $3,000 for a proposed increase in the selectmen’s stipend.
“It was a proposal made by a member of the actual budget committee to increase the costs of the stipend for each selectman by $1,000 each and then to research over the year to see what other towns are doing around us for their selectmen,” Rollins said.
While most everything should remain the same ahead of town meeting, one additional cost will be added. Rollins explained that the Secretary of State’s office has mandated that each municipality use a tablet for the town meeting voting process.
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“That tablet needs to be programmed, which is $600 for town meeting only,” she said. “They’re also requiring one for the school district meeting and it’ll have to be programmed, and that cost will be shared between all of the municipalities in the school district. We’re going to be proposing an additional increase to the operating budget on the floor at town meeting once we establish what that actual cost is going to be.”
Salisbury’s town meeting will take place on Tuesday, March 11 at 7 p.m. at 645 Old Turnpike Road in Salisbury. For more information on Salisbury’s proposed budget, visit www.salisburynh.org.
Rachel Wachman can be reached at rwachman@cmonitor.com