Townsend Finance Committee approves eight year-end transfers totaling more than $76,000

TOWNSEND — June 30, 2026 — Townsend Finance Committee approves $76,000 in year-end budget transfers on final day of fiscal year 2026. The four-member panel, chaired by Sarah Hollis, worked through nine transfer requests at its June 30 meeting, with the sharpest debate over a $32,745 draw from the town's reserve fund to cover a legal counsel shortfall — the second of two transfers needed to plug a combined $57,845 deficit in the town council professional legal services line. The motion initially stalled without a second, was eventually reconsidered, and passed on a roll call with multiple members voting yes "under duress" and one firm no. Members linked the overrun to a shift from a flat retainer to hourly billing and to a FY2026 budget they said was approved at Town Meeting with known negative balances. The select board chair has requested an itemized breakdown of legal spending by category; the committee noted a legal services trust fund proposal rejected at the March 2026 Special Town Meeting may be revisited.