Reporter’s Notebook: Nerding out over budget software, second thoughts on appointments

How much of your property tax bill goes toward the Grafton schools? What are the current costs of the town’s latest building project, what’s it going to look like, what does it look like now, and what’s the timeline on its completion? How is the town’s budget shaping up right this minute?

These are all questions that can be answered through a budgeting platform called ClearGov, which Town Administrator Evan Brassard and Finance Director Mary Lauria hope will not only ease the town’s budgeting process but also make everything about it — past, present and future — completely transparent, not only to administrators in the Municipal Center but also to the general public.

“It gives us a very clear picture of where we are at any given time,” Brassard told the Select Board and Finance Committee Tuesday night. “The software we have now does that, but not in a very user-friendly way.”

How user-unfriendly is the current system? While setting up the Fiscal Year 2022 budget, the town’s budgeting software kept crashing and resetting to May 27, 2021, which Brassard called “not catastrophic, but irritating.”

Both Brassard and Lauria used ClearGov during their time in Munson and its now the most popular software in use by Massachusetts towns.

Information junkies on both boards were very enthusiastic about the project. Meanwhile, in the converted bedroom that serves as the Grafton Common office, the editor/Digital Witch may have been visibly salivating…

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Back on June 23, the Select Board interviewed and appointed candidates to 15 town committees, a lengthy process that some criticized for the lack of discussion about the appointed candidates. Vice Chair Colleen Roy, who led that meeting, said tweaks definitely should be made to the system — among them, a method of keeping track of people who may still want to be considered for positions next time.

While the committees likely won’t be weighing in on candidates, their chairs may suggest attributes they are looking for in a candidate — for example, the Affordable Housing Trust may request someone with legal experience to replace Curtis Williams, who recently resigned. Roy was also concerned that a candidate who did not show for the interview was ultimately named to two committees because no other candidates stepped forward.

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For just one day, you can check out wine and beer at the Grafton Public Library.

On Sunday, July 11, the Friends of the Grafton Public Library will be electing its next board of directors, with a twist — it will be the first time a function will be held in the newly renovated and expanded facility.

The Select Board granted a one-day beer and wine license for the occasion, and also granted seven one day licenses to Sunflower Shanty at Houlden Farm.

Note: Edited for clarification

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