Lunenburg Select Board Recommends FY27 Budget and Override Tiers Ahead of Town Meeting

LUNENBURG -- April 7, 2026, Lunenburg Select Board advances two-tiered Proposition 2.5 override to May ballot on split three-to-one votes. The board voted three to one to recommend approval of both Tier 1 and Tier 2 of the override under Article M, while voting unanimously to recommend the fiscal year 2027 balanced budget under Article L, with materials due at the printer the morning of April 8 for distribution ahead of the May 2 annual town meeting. The balanced budget includes a new assistant town manager position at $121,000, funded in part by eliminating the Information Technology and Communications Director position at $59,459, a tradeoff that drew pushback from one member on affordability grounds. The board also voted unanimously to send a letter drafted by Treasurer-Collector Mylene to the state legislative delegation opposing provisions of Senate Bill 2874 that would remove the Registry of Motor Vehicles hold as an enforcement tool for unpaid motor vehicle excise taxes, noting Lunenburg's current collection rate of 94.11 percent represents approximately $2 million in revenue with roughly $138,000 currently outstanding. Three residents spoke during public comment, including John Bowen of 162 Highland Street, who proposed a one-time $1.89 per thousand tax adjustment on the town's $3.3 billion assessed value base as an alternative to a permanent override, and Anna Lockwood of 91 Main Street, who argued that the school's level-services budget would have required only $800,000, compared to the larger override amount now before voters.