Deerfield Finance Committee approves most budget lines, tables three amid revenue shortfall

Finance Committee · Meeting of February 2, 2026

Deerfield Finance Committee approves more than 20 budget line items at joint session, tables three. Meeting jointly with the Select Board on February 2, the Finance Committee worked through accounts ranging from the $500 Moderator budget to $99,000 in General Insurance, with Chair Julie Chalfant warning at the outset that projected revenues leave only $627,128 — a 3.2 percent margin — available for non-debt spending, while non-school departmental requests alone already exceed that figure by roughly $171,000 before capital or snow and ice are added. The committee tabled the PEG Access Capital account ($4,000), the Planning Board account ($2,000), and the Historical Commission account ($1,175) pending further information, and Town Administrator Christopher Dunne withdrew a motion on the $51,176 OPEB line to explore charging enterprise-fund agencies their proportional share.

General Insurance was approved at $99,000 on a 4-0-1 vote after a motion to table pending additional carrier quotes failed 2-3-0; Dunne said he is shopping competing bids and expects more information by early March.

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Source: the Finance Committee meeting of February 2, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.