Budget Working Group — September 22, 2026

The Fairhaven Budget Working Group convened on September 22, 2026, to organize its procedures and develop a framework for reviewing town finances. After taking attendance and noting the absences of Kevin Gallagher and Bob Baldwin, the group approved a motion to adopt Robert's Rules of Order to govern decorum, with one member abstaining. The members agreed to accelerate their meeting schedule, moving their next session up to September 29, 2026, due to upcoming Select Board deadlines and the urgency of the town's structural budget deficit.

The committee reviewed a draft project plan and review framework presented by Dan Loach. Mark Reese and Town Administrator Keith Hickey urged the committee to maintain a high-level focus rather than duplicating the Finance Committee's detailed operating budget work, suggesting three-year, standardized departmental summaries instead of granular staffing interrogations. Hickey and Rick Trapillo reported on discussions with New Bedford and Acushnet regarding potential regionalization opportunities, including shared sludge disposal to mitigate rising costs from an at-risk Rhode Island incinerator, a potential regional 911 dispatch facility, sharing a conservation agent, and addressing the Fairhaven Animal Shelter's future before the fiscal 2028 budget.

During general discussion and public comment, members and resident Bob Grindrod debated the balance between long-range economic growth and immediate fiscal necessities. Grindrod warned that multi-million-dollar shortfalls over the next several fiscal years require immediate attention to spending and structural efficiencies alongside longer-term revenue drivers. Members also addressed the school department's $26.5 million budget, Chapter 70 net school spending requirements, and potential collaboration with New Bedford's Economic Development Council. Loach and Reese agreed to incorporate members' revisions into the draft framework for formal consideration at the September 29 meeting.

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