GOSHEN — Residents at Saturday’s annual Town Meeting in Goshen will consider a balanced $4.2 million fiscal year 2027 budget, up 3.2% from the current fiscal year’s funding of $4 million.
Most of the proposed of the articles are routine housekeeping, with a few exceptions, according to Town Moderator Steve Estelle, who led an informational preview last week with 35 residents present.
As Goshen faces a shortage of town officials, Article 25 seeks to allow a number of town boards and committees, including the Board of Assessors, Board of Health, Finance Committee, Planning Board, to appoint members if there are vacancies.
One resident questioned whether the move is undemocratic, but Estelle explained an appointment would only be made if there is an empty seat.
A proposed “Earth Moving Bylaw” lays out a protocol for how people seeking to blast or move significant amounts of earth should notify neighbors within 500 feet and town officials.
According to the proposed zoning amendment in Article 26, abutters would receive 24 to 48 hours notice before blasting, the fire chief would be informed on the morning of the blasting, and an annual permit would be procured.
According to Gary Griswold of the Planning Board, those moving 2,000 cubic yards of earth, or what he described as “a lot,” would be required to follow the new zoning bylaw. Griswold added that the bylaw is intended mostly for the quarry, as well as the possibility of a subdivision being developed in town.
Article 27 seeks to amend a bylaw and allow the town to set pay rates for the police chief and constable separately, an amendment to a measure approved in 1982 that called for equal pay for the positions.
Article 28 would revise tax exemptions for a single person making $20,000 a year or a married couple making $30,000 annually. If the change were made, people falling under these income levels would receive a $500 break from their assessed taxes in a given year.
Articles 1 through 11 are general housekeeping: catching up on payments from the current fiscal year, paying down debt, and approving some “couch cushion” money that has been located, as Estelle put it.
Estelle said that Article 12 is usually the longest to vote on during annual Town Meeting since it takes up the budget as a whole. The following articles will allocate funds to individual budget lines, including free cash allocations, town employee compensation and other routine payments.
Healthcare costs are a notable increase in the budget, totaling $332,307 next year compared to $310,305 in the current fiscal year.
Town officials, including Peri Hall, chairperson of the Select Board, said the increase is being driven by steep increases in rates from the Hampshire Group Insurance Trust, which has raised its rates considerably in the last year to recover funds lost predominantly from GLP-1 weight loss medications.
Almost half of the proposed budget, or 48%, is allocated toward education. The proposed education funds for this year total $1.9 million, or 5.7% higher than the current fiscal year.
On the proposed budget $0 has been allocated toward the library, noted Andrew Watt of the Library Board of Trustees. He explained that all expenses will be paid with donations that the library has received.
Annual Town Meeting will begin at 9:30 a.m. in the John James Memorial Town Hall, 42 Main St.
