Lunenburg Select Board Places Two-Tier Proposition 2½ Override on Town Election Ballot

LUNENBURG -- March 31, 2026, Lunenburg Select Board advances two-tier Proposition 2½ override to annual town election ballot at $2.4 million and $3.3 million. The board voted unanimously at its March 31 meeting to place the questions on the election ballot as Question 1 and Question 2, rejecting a 1A/1B format after members argued separate numbering makes clear voters should answer both. Town Counsel Adam Costa, appearing via Zoom, warned that a proposed food-pantry tax-abatement article would not survive legal scrutiny because Massachusetts tax abatements require statutory authority, and a home rule petition through the state legislature would take far longer than the food pantry's immediate need allows. The board also declined to include a bylaw amendment that would have let the Select Board approve trust fund distributions when the Board of Commissioners of Trust Funds lacks a quorum, with Costa questioning whether the Attorney General would approve such a bylaw over a special act. One board member said publicly of the override tiers, "I still have some serious concerns overall with the sustainability and affordability of the override."