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Budget Committee Agenda (minutes)

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BUDGET COMMITTEE PUBLIC HEARING
TOWN OF EPPING, NEW HAMPSHIRE

WEDNESDAY, MAY 13, 2026
PUBLIC MEETING
ATTENDANCE
Vice Chair Matt Hehl
Member Mark Vallone
Member John Cody

Member Amy Rich Crane (joined meeting at 6:07 PM)
Member Michael McInerny

Member Justin Paynter

Member John Van Dolson

Member Kenna Lee Fudge

Member Cassie Hojaboom

Select Board Representative Caitlin McCormack
School Board Representative Matthew Puglielli

OTHER ATTENDEES

Jake Roger, Town Administrator
Kenneth Berkenbush, Fire Chief
Cindy Mulcahy, Recording Secretary

Call to Order at 6:00 PM.

Pledge Allegiance to the Flag,

M. Hehl welcomed the two new members of the Budget Committee.
Public comment

None.

Election of Chair and Vice Chair


MOTION by M. Vallone to nominate Matt Hehl as Chair of the Budget Committee.
SECOND by J. Cody. MOTION carries 10-0.

MOTION by M. Vallone to nominate Amy Rich Crane as Vice Chair of the Budget
Committee, with the condition that if she declines that the issue will be reconsidered.
SECOND by J. Cody. MOTION carries 10-0.

Brief Review of Budget Committee Rules and Procedures

M. Hehl said that the Committee is responsible for setting the bottom-line budget for both
the Town and the School. The Committee meets multiple times with Department Heads
and other involved parties in a lengthy process which lasts until Deliberative Session.
Many materials are posted in Sharepoint for reference and education and he asked
members to review how the Committee is governed by RSAs and other documents
including the Committee’s Rules & Procedures. M. Hehl reminded members not to Reply
All to Committee emails as group discussions may not take place outside of public
meetings (members should email the Chair only). M. Vallone stressed the importance of
attendance and J. Roger said that it is part of both statute and Town policy that four
unexcused absences constitute removal of a member from the Committee. J. Cody
recommended the NHMA (New Hampshire Municipal Association) training for new
Budget Committee members.

A. Crane joined the meeting.

J. Roger asked if anyone knew where the name plaques were as they went missing after
the School Deliberative Session.

Fire Department - Replacement of vehicle

J. Roger explained that the Chief has been working on a CIP (capital improvement plan)
and has completed the vehicle replacement portion with many costs being funded by the
Ambulance Fund (a revolving fund funded by ambulance revenue). Two vehicles are
needed for this year: the Forestry Vehicle and Car 3. The Select Board has approved the
purchase of the Forestry Vehicle and the old one will be used by the Highway
Department. Although the Budget Committee does not have oversight of the Ambulance
Fund, they were asked about the purchase of Car 3 to assess their support and to give the
picture of the whole Town. This information helps determine the operating budget and
warrant articles. J. Roger explained that Car 3 (currently the Prevention Officer's vehicle)
would be auctioned off and the new one would be given perhaps to the Assistant Chief.

K. Berkenbush stated that he took on the 20-year CIP project for replacement of larger
items (over $80,000) after having to ask the Select Board to replace non-functioning


physio monitors last year which were well over their life span. He said that the CIP will
be a living document to be updated as growth happens in town. K, Berkenbush said that
he needs to update the Forestry F-600 information as Highway will receive the old truck
(Highway was authorized to buy a new truck via warrant article). He said that there is a
version of the CIP with a5% per year cost escalator that he will provide to the Committee.

The CIP shows the life cycles of equipment and vehicles and K. Berkenbush pointed out
that the current ambulance will be at the end of its 10-year life cycle in 2027. By 2030 a
ladder truck will be necessary as developments will have taller buildings (the tallest
ladder right now is 35’ and because of the necessary angle, it does not reach the top of a
35’ building). To accommodate a ladder truck K. Berkenbush would get rid of heavy
rescue and Engine 2 to make space in the Fire Station. Right now the cost for the ladder
would be $1,125,000 ($2,125,000 less about $1,000,000 in impact fees, developer
contributions, etc). The CIP reflects averages for expenses and estimated revenues from
previous years. K, Berkenbush said that recent changes in insurance rules reflect about
7% of the Town’s payer profile ($28,000-$40,000) but he has not factored in this projected
increase in revenue yet. Estimated expenses (typically $118,000-125,000) have been
estimated on the high side due to rising costs.

A. Crane asked if there is a charge for calling mutual aid and there is not. Raymond has
a ladder truck but it is not functioning most of the time. The three other closest towns
with a ladder truck are Exeter, Hampton and Newmarket.

J. Cody asked why it was necessary to replace Car 3 when previously a cruiser with life
left in it that would’ve fetched only $6,000-10,000 at auction had been rotated in. K.
Berkenbush said that reusing a police cruiser can become a money pit and quoted a
Federal DOT equation stating that every hour that a car idles equals 30 road miles. He
also said that police have a driving style which wears on cruisers and his preference
would be to not reuse a cruiser. The life cycle of a cruiser is about 5 years, J. Cody asked
for invoices of what was spent on Car 3 and K. Berkenbush will provide them. It was
noted that the Fire Inspector, who is an AEMT, does go on runs. K, Berkenbush said that
his intention is to make the vehicle a pick-up truck available in which Academy trainees
can carpool and carry their equipment.

M. Vallone asked to add the Purchase Date to the CIP spreadsheet for future reference. J.
Cody wanted to know how many times Fire has triple calls as there are three ambulances.
Although the ambulances are funded out of the revolving fund, J. Cody feels that money
used out of the fund takes away from the potential to buy another piece of apparatus and
impacts taxpayers. J. Van Dolson asked if there was a plan to purchase a new ambulance


and K. Berkenbush said that an ambulance was purchased in 2022 and again in 2023 and
the need would be decided later.

J. Paynter advocated for the use of an electric vehicle (EV) whenever appropriate because
their total life-cycle costs are low. He noted that a used electric Ford F-150 with low
mileage could be purchased for $40,000. He said that there are many myths around
electric vehicles and K. Berkenbush said he did not have a lot of concerns over smaller
EVs but that the option wouldn’t work for larger vehicles (ie. Ford F-600). C. Hojaboom
asked if Car 3 were replaced with a truck instead of an SUV what the cost difference
would be and K. Berkenbush said that they are similar in price.

A. Crane asked if any items for Fire are purchased through the budget and K. Berkenbush
said that all items are funded by the Ambulance Fund. She also asked if there was a
planned minimum balance and K. Berkenbush said he would like to leave $750,000 in it.
J. Paynter thanked K. Berkenbush for buying BK radios over Motorola for cost-savings
measures,

J. Roger noted that the estimate for installation of repeaters at the School is anticipated in
June with the work to be done over the summer. There is no Homeland Security funding
for the project.

J. Roger asked for a motion to show Committee support for replacing Car 3, which will
be considered by the Select Board. J. Cody reminded the Committee that the Town almost
leased a police cruiser last year and that he doesn’t see common sense in getting a new
fire vehicle when a cruiser can be recycled. He noted that the necessary outfit (lights, cap,
etc) for a vehicle is also costly. A, Crane said that K, Berkenbush felt that the Car 3 expense
would be adequately covered and J. Cody stated that the Ambulance Fund should not be
considered a “piggy bank” and is Town money.

MOTION by J. Paynter to recommend the purchase of a new replacement vehicle for Car
3. SECOND C. Hojaboom. MOTION carries 9-2 (J. Cody, J. Van Dolson against).

J. Roger asked the Committee to take a vote on the electric vehicle issue since three years
ago there was zero support. M. McInerny voiced support for an electric vehicle as long
as it met the driving needs of one of the Fire Department members. J. Van Dolson said
that EV costs would be substantially lower than a gas-powered vehicle and that use for
Fire seems more appropriate than for the Police Department.


MOTION by A. Crane to recommend researching the use of an electric vehicle for the
Fire Department. SECOND by J. Paynter.

J. Van Dolson said that it this motion played out that he would switch his vote on the
previous one. J, Cody said he would be very cautious about having an EV for an
emergency vehicle and warned that it is very difficult to put out an EV fire. J. Paynter
said that there is a lower rate of fire in EVs than gas-powered vehicles. Fire Departments
in Nashua and Kittery, ME have both used EV vehicles and J. Cody said he would like to
hear input from those towns’ mechanics. J. Roger noted that the lower costs of EVs make
a good argument but that some people may view the purchase of an EV as a “luxury”.

MOTION carries 10-1 (J. Cody against).
Discussion on 2027 budget targeting process

At the end of the last budget season the Committee voted to have a formal discussion on
whether to aim for a target percentage to give to Departments as in past years. M.
Mclnerny said that he felt the Committee was doing less than should be done as far as
directing the budget. He also called for doing a comparison of simple metrics of some
adjoining towns. He also thought the Committee should ask each Department Head for
a capital asset management draft with explanations. He wanted the Committee to look at
a formula that former Budget Committee member Joe Trombley had mentioned and J.
Roger said that it was a municipal cost index.

M. Vallone commented that the Rockingham County budget increased 13%, the largest
jump ina long time, owing partly to decreased Federal and State revenues. He said that
target-setting can be good and would be worthwhile discussing but that he, like A. Crane,
does not want to spend multiple meetings hashing out a particular number. J. Cody did
not agree with setting a target percentage and would rather ask Department Heads to
present a reasonable budget backed by evidence. J. Cody said that 10-12% annual
increases are unsustainable and that decisions should be based upon “needs” vs.
“wants”. J. Cody wants the Department Heads to present an overview to the Committee
with detailed information including how many patrols are in each shift, what hours are
worked, overtime, etc, A. Crane said that Departments should also provide case-based
scenarios for what their plan would be if the Town budget went to default J. Cody said
that some towns have consolidated efforts to share costs and J. Roger said that there have
been some cost-savings measures between the Town and the School and that there are
examples of towns banding together (ie. Primex). J. Cody suggested that Town
Administrators meet quarterly to brainstorm cost-savings.


J. Paynter would like a picture of how allocated money has actually been spent versus
how it was planned and presented to the Budget Committee last year and what expenses
may have been made that had not been discussed. J. Cody mentioned that the School had
purchased a new van which was not discussed at all last year,

J. Cody said that the median house cost in the state is $675,000. A. Crane noted that
housing costs have increased 160% in the State while income has only grown 30% and
that salaries are the largest part of the Town’s budget. J. Cody agreed that the Town
needed to remain competitive to attract employees without trying to be the best. He also
noted that the Town needs an additional well in addition to the wastewater plant upgrade
and J. Roger said that the Town has received a grant for exploratory drilling.

C, McCormack said that it is important to keep a baseline in mind but that it wouldn’t
make sense to apply the same one to both the School and the Town. A Crane
recommended that each Department develop its own individual target percentage. C.
McCormack said that fiscal austerity is crucial owing to the wastewater upgrade in 2028.
A. Crane said that she was against setting a target and that she wanted Departments to
simply demonstrate to the Committee the best they could do with their budgets after
allowing for inflation. C. McCormack said that the Committee should also know of any
drivers to bring the budget down (i.e. expiring contracts),

M. Vallone said that instead of using a hard target maybe a target number could be used
as an internal lens. He recommended coming up with 3-4 questions on how the Town is
getting value out of the budget. Department Heads could consider how they can save
money over the summer. He reminded members that there are also considerations on the
revenue side and the Town is in the running for a possible grant.

A. Crane noted that the Committee should discuss their views on the addition of warrant
articles each year. J. Cody noted that warrant article positions that the Town votes for
legally cannot be cut. J. Cody also advocated for getting the Ambulance Fund back into
the budget. M. Vallone said that Departments should think about whether warrant
articles are funded by capital reserve funds and whether they affect the tax rate.

M. Hehl recapped that the Committee seemed to agree on staying away froma hard-and-
fast target but to instead use an internal target as a lens and to set guidelines on how
budget numbers would be presented to them. The guidelines would require the
presentation of more detailed data (including CIPs, any expected increases, fund balances
and expectations for the funds, etc.) and back-up for any budget asks as compared to the


last three years, The Committee will also request metrics from other towns, along with
drivers and history, and information on Epping’s projected growth. The Committee will
prepare a formalized guide at the end of the next meeting that J. Roger can take to the
Town and that M. Puglielli can take to the School. It was agreed that an Operational
Summary and an Operational Projection should be requested from each Department.
This would be some additional work but M. Hehl said that Departments should be asking
themselves these questions to be successful.

J. Paynter said that Epping is becoming the new Exeter and that whether the Town is
budgeting responsibly for that growth needs to be explored. He thanked A, Crane for
asking the Budget Committee to have this important discussion. M. Hehl said that
additional concerns could be emailed to him before the next meeting.

Calendar review

The next meeting will be on 6/10 at 6:00 PM. There will be a summer break and the next
meeting will be on 9/9,

J. Roger said that he saw no reason why warrant articles could not be presented earlier in
the year to assist the Budget Committee and M. Hehl asked to get the full-year meeting
schedule as soon as possible.

Public comment
None.
Old/new business

M. Hehl confirmed that no action needed to be taken on some minutes leftover from the
previous budget season,

MOTION by to M. Vallone to adjourn the meeting. SECOND by J. Cody. MOTION
carries 11-0.

Amy Rich{Crane, Vice Chair

J Cotly; er John Van ape
Michael MicIneprfy, Mémber Justin Paynter, Member



7 Hr

Matt Puglielli, Schodl Board Rep in MéCormack, Select Bd Rep

Mark Vallone, Member