2021 Annual Town Meeting Warrant

T 0 W N   W A R R A N T

Commonwealth of Massachusetts

FRANKLIN, ss.

To the Constable of the Town of New Salem in the County of Franklin.

Greetings:

In the name of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, you are hereby directed to notify and warn the inhabitants of said Town, qualified to vote in elections and in Town affairs, to meet behind Town Hall, 15 South Main Street, in said Town on June 14, 2021 at 5 pm, then and there to act on the following articles:

ARTICLE 1: To hear the reports of Town Officers and Committees or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 2: To see if the Town will fix the salaries of all elected officials for the ensuing year as follows, or take any action in relation thereto.

Office                                                  FY 2021       FY 2022

Selectboard (3 members)                    $5276              $5382

Town Clerk                                         $7505              $7656

Assessors (3 members)                        $5053              $5155

School Committee (5 members)          $7064              $7206

Constable                                            $ 236               $ 241

Moderator                                           $ 134               $ 137

Board of Health (3 members)             $4187              $ 4271

ARTICLE 3: To see if the Town will vote to authorize the Town Treasurer, with approval of the Selectboard, to borrow money from time to time in anticipation of the revenue of the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2021 in accordance with the provisions of the General Laws Chapter 44, Section 4; and to issue a note or notes therefor, payable within one year; and to renew any note or notes as may be given for a period of less than one year in accordance with General Laws Chapter 44, Section 17, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 4: To Review, Discuss, Debate and Vote upon the Annual Appropriations in Support of the Town’s Operation for FY 2022—July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022, or take any action in relation thereto.  The proposed Annual Appropriations are as follows:

Desc.                                                                                                               Request

Town Meeting – Article 4

            Non-School

                        General Government

                                    Selectboard                                                                 $9218

                                                Town Coordinator                                                      $ 48,400

                                                Finance Committee                                                     $ 200

                                                Accountant                                                                 $ 28,949

                                                Assessors                                                                     $ 29,652

                                                Treasurer                                                                     $ 25,873

                                                Tax Collector                                                              $ 19,829

                                                Legal Expenses                                                           $ 12,000

                                                Personnel Board                                                          $ 380

                                                Constable                                                                    $ 241

                                                Town Clerk                                                                 $ 9,907

                                                Election, Registration, Moderator                              $ 9,835

                                                Copier Maintenance                                                    $ 500

                                                School Committee                                                      $ 7,206

                                                Council on Aging                                                        $ 600

                                                Cell Phone and Air Cards                                           $ 3,800

                                                Certified Comp.-Treasurer and Collector                   $ 2,000

                                                Certified Comp.-Assessor’s Clerk                              $ 500

                                                Short Term Borrowing                                                $ 5,000

                                                Franklin County Assessment FRCOG                       $ 8,465

                                                Landfill Monitoring                                                    $ 5,200

                                    General Government Subtotal                                                            $ 227,755

                                    General Highway       

                                                Highway                     Salaries                                    $ 193,145

                                                Highway                     Expenses                                 $ 67,750

                                    General Highway Subtotal                                                     $ 260,895

                                    Insurance

                                                General Insurance                                                       $ 41,000

                                                Group Life & Health Insurance                                  $ 93,610

                                    Insurance Subtotal                                                                  $ 134,610

                                    Miscellaneous

                                                Reserve Fund                                                              $ 20,000

                                                Town Reports                                                             $ 1,600

                                                Franklin County Retirement Assessment                   $ 59,882

                                                Payroll Taxes                                                               $ 13,020

                                                Stabilization Fund                                                       $ 50,000

                                                Capital Stabilization Fund                                          $ 50,000

                                                Unemployment Acct                                                   $ 6,000

                                    Miscellaneous Subtotal                                                           $ 200,502

                                    Miscellaneous Boards

                                                Conservation Comm                                                   $ 528

                                                Planning Board                                                           $ 1,875

                                                Zoning Board of Appeals                                           $ 300

                                                Recreation, Fields, Lawn & Cemetery Maint.            $ 14,000

                                                Veterans Services                                                        $ 2,434

                                                Veterans Benefits                                                       $ 9,500

                                    Library                        Salaries                                    $ 39,759

                                    Library                        Expenses                                 $ 25,650

                                    Library Bldg. Maint.                                                   $ 1,500

                                    Recreation Comm                                                       $ 560

                                    Historical Comm                                                         $ 702

                                    Memorial Day Cmte                                                   $ 540

                                    Old Home Day                                                           $ 1,350

                                    Technology Fund                                                        $ 5,500

                                    MLP (Broadband) Manager                                       $ 1,200           

                                    Energy Committee                                                      $ 300

                        Miscellaneous Boards subtotal                                               $ 105,698

                        Property Maintenance            

                                    Purch/Repair Equipment                                             $ 3,500

                                    Town Bldg Repairs & Maint                                      $ 25,417

                        Property Maintenance subtotal                                               $ 28,917

                        Public Safety

                                    Police Dept                 Salaries                                    $ 83,342

                                    Police Dept                 Expenses                                 $ 34,990

                                    Fire Dept                     Salaries                                    $ 55,576

                                    Fire Dept                     Expenses                                 $ 48,090

                                    Reverse 911 (Connect CTY)                                      $ 1,210

                                    FD & PD Comm Equipment Maint                            $ 2,982

                                    Ambulance Service                                                     $ 49,315

                                    Emergency Management                                            $ 2,255

                                    Animal Control                                                           $ 3,680

                                    Franklin County Solid Waste District                        $ 3,836

                                    Animal Inspector                                                        $ 365

                                    Board of Health          Salaries                                    $ 19,754

                                    Board of Health          Expenses                                 $ 58,370

                                    Building Inspector                                                      $ 11,239

                        Public Safety subtotal                                                             $ 375,004

            Non-School subtotal                                                                           $ 1,333,381

            Schools

                        Swift River School                                                                 $ 865,440

                        Swift River Transportation                                                     $ 177,438

                        Mahar Regional School                                                           $ 675,253

                        Mahar Debt Service                                                                $ 1,826

                        Franklin Cty Tech School                                                       $ 123,870

            Schools subtotal                                                                                  $ 1,843,827

Subtotal for Article 4 —————————————————-                    $3,177,208

ARTICLE 5:  To see if the Town will vote to authorize the Town Treasurer to enter into Compensating Balance Agreements during the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2021, as permitted by General Laws Chapter 44, Section 53F, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 6:              To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $4,000 for the Assessor’s revaluation expense, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 7: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $2,500 for the Professional Services fund, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 8: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $3,000 for the Town’s Independent Audit expense, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 9: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $15,961 for which the voters of New Salem have approved a Proposition 2 ½ debt exclusion, for the FY22 Mahar construction/reconstruction project payment, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 10: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $3,023 for the FY22 Franklin County Tech School debt payment, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 11: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $58,425 to be used by the Highway Department for expenses related to snow removal and winter road maintenance, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 12: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $13,863 for Cost of Living Adjustments for non-elected salaries, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 13: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $11,900  for which the voters of New Salem have approved a Proposition 2 ½ debt exclusion, for the Library construction project loan payment, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 14: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $1,000 for the Town’s OPEB Actuarial Expenses, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 15: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $25,000 for the Town’s OPEB Liability Trust, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 16: To see if the Town will vote to raise & appropriate the sum of $5,000 to be used for Fire Department Turnout Gear, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 17: To see if the Town will vote to raise & appropriate the sum of 1,500 to pay for Fire Department Service Physicals, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 18: To see if the Town will vote to raise & appropriate the sum of $2,500 to pay for Fire Department OSHA required equipment, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 19: To see if the Town will vote to raise & appropriate the sum of $5,000 to pay for the replacement of all Fire and Police Department radios and add-on equipment for vehicles and stations, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 20: To see if the Town will vote to raise & appropriate the sum of $9,000 to pay for the purchase of a new mower, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 21: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $50,050, for which the voters of New Salem have approved a Proposition 2 ½ debt exclusion, for the FY2022 loan payment on the Fire Truck, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 22: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $163,314, for which the voters of New Salem have approved a Proposition 2 ½ debt exclusion to pay for FY22 Broadband Debt, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 23: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $41,160, for which the voters of New Salem have approved a Proposition 2 ½ debt exclusion, for the FY2022 loan payment on the door/window replacement project at Swift River School, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 24: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $27,898 for the Highway Barn loan payment, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 25: To see if the Town will vote to transfer from Capital Stabilization the sum of $10,000 for Swift River School Capital request, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 26: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $10,000 for Tax Title Expense, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 27: To see if the Town will vote to transfer the sum of $50,000 from Free Cash to Stabilization, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 28: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $50,000 for the Vehicle Replacement Stabilization Fund, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 29: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $3,000 for Town Tree Maintenance/Removal/Replanting Fund, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 30: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $5,000 for the Tree Warden Expense Fund, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 31: Upon the recommendation of DOR, Shall the town vote to establish a Broadband donations fund for the purpose of accepting a sum of money to paydown debt, (on an annual basis), on the Broadband borrowing  or take any action thereto

ARTICLE 32: To see if the Town will vote to apply for, accept and expend any Federal, State or private grant monies on behalf of the Town (such as Library Aid, Cultural Council, Incentive Aid, Community Development Fund, Green Communities Grants, Public Safety Grants, Foundations, etc.), or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 33: To see if the town will vote to accept M.G.L Chapter 60, Section 15 regarding the setting of demand fees for delinquent local taxes; or take any action relative thereto or thereon.

ARTICLE 34: To see if the town will vote to accept M.G.L Chapter 40, Section 22F regarding the setting of fees for the preparation of Municipal Lien Certificates; or take any action relative thereto or thereon.

ARTICLE 35: To see if the Town will vote to authorize the Selectboard to declare certain items as surplus, and to trade in or sell surplus equipment, or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 36: To see if the Town will vote to authorize revolving fund expenditure limits for FY22 as shown in the table below or take any action in relation thereto.

ARTICLE 37: To see if the Town will vote to transfer to the Selectboard, for the purpose of sale or other conveyance, the custody and control of the so-called 1794 Meetinghouse building and the parcel of land on which it is located in New Salem Center, situated at 26 South Main Street, and shown as parcel 18 on New Salem Assessors’ Map 408, and to authorize the Selectboard to conduct a request for proposals process for disposition of the property to an entity or organization that will hold and manage the property so as to preserve its historic values; and to authorize the Selectboard to execute all documents and take all actions necessary to accomplish such sale or other conveyance, or take any other action relative thereto.  

ARTICLE 38: To see if the Town of New Salem will vote to accept the provisions of a proposed zoning bylaw to define and regulate the use of residential housing as “Short-Term Rentals” (STR) in the Town of New Salem.

Section 1. Purpose

The purposes of this section are to:

1. To define and regulate commercial use of residential housing as “short-term rentals” in the Town of New Salem.
2. Provide a process through which certain residential premises and rooms within residential premises may be registered and licensed with the Town of New Salem for use as STR.
3. Provide for the orderly operation of STR within the Town’s residential neighborhoods including annual inspections and maintenance of a guest register.
4. Provide for health and safety standards for STR, to minimize public safety risks for guests and visitors and to minimize possible nuisances for abutters.

Section 2. Legislative Intent and Authority

This Bylaw is adopted in accordance with Massachusetts General Laws c.64G, § 14, which authorizes municipalities to enact bylaws to regulate operators of Short-Term Rentals, and the Town’s Home Rule authority under the Massachusetts Constitution. Nothing herein shall interfere with the independent authority of the Board of Health, Fire Department or Building Inspector, to enact their own health and safety regulations with respect to short-term rentals facilities.

Section 3. Definitions

1. Short-term rental (STR): Any rental of a residential dwelling unit, or of a bedroom within a dwelling unit, in exchange for payment, as residential accommodations for a duration of less than ninety (90) consecutive days, but not a bed-and-breakfast, lodging facility, hotel, or motel.
2. Short-term renter: Any person or persons occupying a dwelling unit, or a bedroom within a dwelling unit, as a short-term rental.
3. Owner/Operator-occupied short-term rental: The STR of a dwelling unit, or of individual bedrooms within a dwelling unit, that is the primary residence of its operator.
4. Owner/Operator-non occupied short-term rental: The STR of a dwelling unit that is not the primary residence of the owner/operator, but where the dwelling of the owner/operator’s primary residence is within the Town of New Salem.

Requirements

1. The single-family dwelling must be a property owner of the STR. It may either be an Owner Operator-occupied STR or an Owner Operator non-occupied STR. No more than four bedrooms in the dwelling may be offered for rental. Bedrooms must be rented as part of a single rent contract.  Rooms may not be rented separately under separate contracts at the same rental period.
2. Registration: Short-term rentals in single-family dwellings must register annually with the Town Clerk with location, number of rooms available, and emergency contact information for the owner of the Short-Term Rental property.
3. Licensing: All Short-Term Rentals in Single-Family Dwellings shall be licensed by the Board of Selectmen. Failure to obtain a license shall constitute a violation of this Section. The Board of Selectmen may adopt rules and regulations related to the issuance of such licenses, including the fees to be paid and the conditions to be satisfied by any applicant for such a license.  Licenses shall be for a two-year term and are renewable at the discretion of the Board of Selectmen.  Persons operating a Short-Term Rental in a Single-Family Dwelling shall also comply with all Zoning and Zoning Bylaws of the Town of New Salem, including Bylaws regulating signs.  They must also demonstrate compliance with Massachusetts laws and regulations, including but not limited to, the Massachusetts State Building, Plumbing, Electrical, Fire, and Sanitary Codes. Proof of commercial rental property insurance must be provided.
4. Retention of Records: The operator shall retain and make available to the Selectboard upon written request, records to demonstrate compliance with this section, including but not limited to: records demonstrating Owner/Operator Occupied STR or Owner Operator Non-Occupied STR and records showing that operator is the owner or valid leaseholder of the residential unit offered as a short-term rental and resides in the Town of New Salem. The operator shall retain such records for a period of three years from the date the residential unit is last registered for a certificate of fitness inspection.

Section 5: Inspections

Short-Term Rentals in Single-Family Dwellings must pass the following inspections: Annual Inspection and approval from the Health Department.  Annual fire inspection demonstrating adequate egress, smoke detectors, and carbon monoxide detectors, as determined by the Fire Chief or designated fire inspector.

Section 6: Enforcement

The Board of Selectmen or its designee may issue orders as appropriate to aid in the enforcement of this Bylaw and may enforce these provisions in equity, including the request for injunctive relief in a court of competent jurisdiction or enforcement by noncriminal disposition pursuant to G.L. c.40 §21D. Any failure to comply with any order issued hereunder shall result in the issuance of a formal warning. Any failure to comply will result in a fine of $100. Any failure to comply after the issuance of said final fine may be punishable by a subsequent fine of $300.  Each day of a continued non-compliance shall constitute a separate violation. Further, the Board of Selectmen may hold a hearing, with notice to the licensee, to determine if such a license should be modified, suspended or revoked.

ARTICLE 39: To see if the Town will vote to accept the provisions of M.G.L. c. 64G, section 3A, and impose a local excise tax upon the transfer of occupancy of any room or rooms in an STR within the Town of New Salem at a rate of 6%. Said excise tax to take effect on the first day of the calendar quarter commencing at least thirty days after such vote of the Town Meeting, or take any action relative thereto.