SAU #84 deliberative takes recess

Littleton SAU meeting suspended until Tuesday the 13th.

The citizens of Littleton voted to recess until proper budget documents could be presented, citing a lack of preparation from the School Board as the reason. Within the first hour of the deliberative session, confusion surrounding the operating budget transitioned into concern when the people were not given enough information pertaining to the figures being reviewed.

The School Board fielded questions about specific line items early in the evening, however, this did not seem to satisfy the individuals present at the time. The concern from a large portion of citizens was that the documents presented didn’t adequately cover the specific expenses on the budget. A request for more detailed reports was granted, however, the 79 page report was difficult to produce at that time. A few copies were made in a hurry so that they could be reviewed.

Reconvene in 5 days

A motion from the floor was made to “adjourn” until proper paperwork could be presented to the citizens. The moderator corrected the term “adjournment” and advised that a “recess” would be made if the motion passed. The motion was seconded and subsequently went to a floor vote. The voice vote made it hard to discern the quantities for and against. A standing vote was cast with 31 votes for a recess, and only 8 votes against. The affirmative vote effectively closed the session until Tuesday the 13th.

At the close of the meeting, Littleton budget committee chairman Steve Kelly offered words of advice for the townsfolk. He stated that the most under-utilized portion of the budget process is the budget hearings. It is within this forum, that detailed information and questioning can be had on every line of the budget. If there were better attendance at the budget hearings, the Deliberative session questions could have been answered weeks prior.

The entire meeting from 2-8-18 is available for viewing below.