Accountability posts

SUNAPEE SELECTBOARD — OCTOBER 27, 2025: What Was Decided Without Public Notice

The October 27 Selectboard meeting was publicly posted as a budget committee 'kick off' with a 'preliminary warrant article discussion.' What actually took place was a detailed, substantive session covering the town's most consequential fiscal decisions of the year — and most of it was not on the public agenda. Residents had no meaningful notice and no opportunity to attend specifically for these discussions.

Here's what was discussed off-agenda: The 2025 budget failure means Sunapee must automatically carry $422,000 in previously rejected warrant articles into the 2026 baseline budget — before any new spending is added. On top of that: 9% health insurance increases and 3% cost-of-living adjustments. The Town Manager stated plainly that the resulting budget contains nothing 'thoughtful,' 'forward-leaning,' or providing a rainy-day fund. The board also conducted a detailed review of specific warrant articles heading to the March ballot — including a new police officer position, fire chief position, solar bond, EV purchase, transfer station capital repairs, and 250th anniversary celebration funding. These are not preliminary sketches. They are ballot-bound decisions shaped in a session the public had no reason to attend.

Two other issues deserve residents' direct attention. First: Sunapee bears 29% of county costs — compared to roughly 4% for comparable towns — due to higher property valuations and county bond obligations for nursing home improvements. This is a structural tax premium embedded in every resident's bill, and the board acknowledged it with no mitigation plan proposed. Second: the new Advisory Budget Committee Chair — a community member — raised the question every resident should be asking: 'What numbers are real, which ones aren't?' following prior audit findings and underreported expenses. The board pointed to new accounting software as the answer. No explanation of what went wrong, no accountability measures, no timeline for restoring trust.

The voices inside this meeting reflected the real stakes. Police Chief Cobb noted that 25% of Sunapee students rely on food assistance. a speaker warned that sustained budget gutting risks a 'negative turmoil' of staff departures the town may not recover from. These are not abstract concerns — they are the human consequences of decisions being made in sessions the public cannot meaningfully access. The next public budget opportunities are the November 6 all-day budget session and the January 12 public hearing. The March 10 town election is when residents vote on the results. Show up before then. https://meetingwatch.org/nh/sunapee/selectboard/2025-10-27/ #MeetingWatch #SunapeeNH