NEW SALEM — Adoption of the proposed budget figures at Annual Town Meeting on Monday would mean voters will give their blessing to a 5% increase in the total operating budget.

Residents will meet in the Town Hall basement at 7 p.m. to take action on 34 warrant articles, which includes a $3.56 million budget that is $169,508 higher than the current fiscal year. The overall budget includes $1.87 million for schools, constituting a 6.83% hike over this fical year’s budget.

“You can’t go wrong as a country when you educate the young people,” said Selectboard Chair Susan Cloutier, who is serving as an unofficial town coordinator until Emily Hill starts her new job on June 2. “Each department has worked hard to trim the budget as much as they can.”

The education budget has increases to every line item except for the town’s assessment for Franklin County Technical School. If the budget is adopted, this would decrease $207,656 to $180,860.

The proposed non-school subtotal is $1.685 million, which is up 3.04% from the current fiscal year. There is no change in Police Department salaries or expenses or Fire Department salaries. Fire Department expenses are proposed to decrease from $92,752 to $87,070.

If adopted, the town coordinator salary would increase 86% – from $39,343 to $73,200. Hill has been hired by the Selectboard to replace Jessica Mooring, who resigned on May 9 after four months on the job. She had replaced Kathy Neal in January and told the Greenfield Recorder the position simply “didn’t work out.”

Cloutier mentioned a meet-and-greet will be held from 6:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Monday so residents can introduces themselves to Hill. Light refreshments will be served.

One of the most substantial articles, Article 26, pertains to transferring $149,500 from the stabilization fund for a new multi-purpose truck for the Highway Department. Aaron Thibeault, who recently passed his one-year anniversary as highway superintendent, explained his three-man crew needs a new vehicle to the replace the 2013 model that costs too much to maintain. Not replacing the truck would put too much strain on the other apparatuses his departments uses to compensate for the older vehicle. 

“Lastly, we need to make sure that we have proper trucks and equipment for snow removal and winter maintenance and to accommodate for breakdowns,” Thibeault said.

He told the Greenfield Recorder that if Article 26 is adopted he will order a one-ton truck with a stainless steel dump body, plow and sander. He said he is confident voters will adopt the article because they have historically been supportive of the hard-working department.

Cloutier said she is curious to hear any discussion around Article 20, which aims to transfer $44,000 to refurbish the tennis and basketball courts near Town Hall. She said physical activity is particularly important following the COVID-19 pandemic and making the courts usable again would benefit residents of all ages.

A separate article asks voters if they agree to transfer $65,000 from the Vehicle Stabilization Fund to replace the Police Department’s 2021 hybrid cruiser.

The warrant can be found at: tinyurl.com/NewSalem2025.

Reach Domenic Poli at: dpoli@recorder.com or 413-930-4120.