Accountability posts
Drafts ready to share. Click to copy, then post. Selectboard · Sunapee · January 5, 2026.
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Off-agenda budget approval affecting public safety and taxes
On 1/5, Sunapee's Selectboard approved a 6.23% budget increase — including $100K in fire dept cuts — in a discussion that wasn't substantively on the public agenda. Residents had no notice to prepare or show up. That's a transpa... https://meetingwatch.org/nh/sunapee/selectboa...
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Public participation in budget oversight being rendered meaningless
A volunteer Budget Committee member told the Sunapee Selectboard on 1/5: 'I haven't had a chance to speak... I won't do it next year.' The board said nothing. If public oversight is just a checkbox, residents deserve to know that. https://meetingwatch.org/nh/sunapee/selectboar...
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Major cost increase decided off-agenda without public input
Sunapee's dispatch fees jumped from $30K to $133K — a 343% increase. On 1/5, the board quietly absorbed it into the budget with no public notice. That decision shaped the final tax increase figure approved at the same meeting. https://meetingwatch.org/nh/sunapee/selectboard/20...
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Fire department staffing crisis and budget cut contradiction
Sunapee board members said out loud on 1/5: the new fire truck might sit in the garage because there aren't enough qualified people to run it. Meanwhile the fire dept budget was cut $100K. That's a public safety issue — not a fo... https://meetingwatch.org/nh/sunapee/selectboa...
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🧵 THREAD: Here's what happened at the Sunapee Selectboard meeting on 1/5/26 — including decisions made without public notice that affect your taxes, your library, and your fire department. #MeetingWatch
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1/ The board approved a 6.23% budget increase with $323,000 in cuts. This included limiting new hires to 9-month positions, reducing library hours, and cutting the fire department by $100,000. The Town Manager called it 'equival...
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2/ Here's the problem: the detailed budget discussion — including the final approval — was NOT substantively listed on the public agenda. It appeared as a bullet point under the Town Manager's report. Residents had no real notic...
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3/ Among the specifics decided off-agenda: dispatch fees rose from ~$30,000 to $133,000 (343% increase). The board decided town departments would absorb this cost internally. That decision directly shaped the 6.23% figure approv...
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4/ On library cuts: a library trustee pushed back, saying the library had already made reductions and any further cuts would require a special trustee meeting. The board acknowledged this — then approved the budget anyway. That...
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5/ On fire safety: board members openly acknowledged the new fire truck could be unusable due to a lack of qualified staff. One member said: 'If it doesn't leave the garage, what the hell do you have?' The fire dept budget was s...
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6/ A volunteer Budget Committee member told the board during public comment: 'I haven't had a chance to speak or talk about it... I won't do it next year.' The board gave no response. If that role is structurally meaningless, th...
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7/ A resident challenged the board directly, saying: 'I've been hearing all year how you don't have any money — and now all of a sudden you do [for a party].' The board did not respond during public comment. The Town Manager lat...
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8/ The budget is now posted to the town website. The public hearing is coming. If you care about library hours, fire staffing, or how your tax dollars are being managed — now is the time to show up. Don't wait to be surprised ag... https://meetingwatch.org/nh/sunapee/selectboard/2026-01-05/ #SunapeeNH
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Longer-form draft.
SUNAPEE SELECTBOARD — January 5, 2026: What was decided, and what residents weren't told in advance. At Monday's Selectboard meeting, the board approved a FY2026 municipal budget reflecting a 6.23% increase and $323,000 in cuts. Those cuts include limiting new position hires to 9-month terms, reducing library hours, and cutting the fire department budget by $100,000. The Town Manager described the result as 'equivalent to operating in a default budget year.' That's a significant statement — and it was made during a meeting where the detailed budget discussion was not substantively listed on the public agenda. Residents who wanted to comment on specific cuts had no reasonable notice that this would be the night to do it. Also decided without prior public notice: how to handle a 343% increase in dispatch fees — from roughly $30,000 to $133,000. The board resolved that town departments would absorb this cost internally rather than passing it to taxpayers. That's a choice with real budget consequences, and it was made in a discussion that appeared nowhere on the published agenda. These two off-agenda decisions together shaped the final tax increase figure the board approved at the same meeting. There are other concerns worth tracking. Board members acknowledged openly that Sunapee's new fire truck may sit unused because there aren't enough qualified personnel to operate it — while simultaneously approving a $100,000 cut to the fire department. A library trustee noted the library had already made cuts and would need a special meeting to absorb further reductions; the board approved the budget anyway. And a volunteer Budget Committee member said publicly that she has had no meaningful ability to participate in deliberations and won't serve again next year. The board did not respond. The budget is now available on the town website. A public hearing is scheduled. If library hours, fire department staffing, emergency preparedness, or your property tax rate matter to you, this is the moment to engage — before decisions are finalized, not after. https://meetingwatch.org/nh/sunapee/selectboard/2026-01-05/ #MeetingWatch #SunapeeNH