The Board of Finance’s hopes that their role in a controversy over a town purchase would end after they documented their concerns with the State were dashed when the issue reared its divisive head on the pages of The Willimantic Chronicle. In remarks in an article on April 24, and in commentary submitted to the newspaper on April 25, First Selectman Allan Cahill announced that another vote to rescind the ordinance that established the Board of Finance, thought to have been resolved at a January 6, 2020 referendum, lurks on an uncertain horizon.

“The Board of Selectmen, along with myself, can manage the business of Hampton better and more efficiently without alienating the Community as a result of the BOF’s political posturing,” Cahill wrote. “That is why the question to repeal the Ordinance the BOF will again be added to a Town Meeting moving forward.” The vote will not be scheduled until residents are able to gather again, Cahill said.

Residents voted in favor of retaining the Board of Finance to continue as the town’s fiscal authority in a 254-172 vote at a referendum the Selectmen scheduled after the finance board hired an attorney “to assist in recommending procedures to protect the Town’s finances from unauthorized expenditures” when the Selectmen purchased a bucket truck to remove hazardous trees without the statutorily prescribed taxpayer approval. This latest attempt to abolish the Board of Finance appears to be in response to the March 11, 2020 complaint the finance board filed with the State’s Attorney concerning “statutory infractions committed” by Town officials. The finance board documented the events that led to, and followed, the controversial purchase on the advice of counsel, forwarding their concerns to the Office of Policy and Management as well.

The Selectmen voted to purchase the truck to remove 250 trees identified as hazardous on October 7, 2019, presenting the plan to the Board of Finance on October 8. The finance board scheduled a meeting to review the costs of options available for removing the trees prior to the October 24 Town Meeting the Selectmen scheduled for taxpayers to consider the purchase. However, the Selectmen cancelled the Town Meeting and instead purchased the truck for $173,600 on October 30 “without the statutorily mandated approvals of both the Board of Finance and the Town’s legislative body,” the complaint alleges. Documentation subsequently obtained by the finance board revealed that the purchase was funded with monies from a capital account for trucks and equipment, the balance of the line item approved for paving roads, and an unearned portion of the First Selectman’s salary. On advice of counsel, the finance board submitted a complaint concerning the unauthorized purchase to appropriate state authorities.

In his written response to the Chronicle, however, Cahill characterized the complaint differently, claiming that the Board of Finance leveled “unfounded allegations” against him that were “unequivocally untrue, slanderous and threatening.” In both the article and in his correspondence Cahill asserted his right as First Selectman under Connecticut General Statute 28-8a to “take such action as he deems necessary to mitigate the major disaster or emergency”, defined as “any catastrophe including, but not limited to, any hurricane, tornado, storm, high water, wind-driven water, tidal wave, tsunami, earthquake, volcanic eruption, landslide, mudslide, snowstorm or drought, or, regardless of cause, any fire, flood, explosion, or man-made disaster in any part of this State” as declared by the Governor. At the December 23 Town Meeting prior to the referendum, Cahill pointed to his powers in emergency circumstances under Homeland Security to justify the purchase of the bucket truck, however this was the first time that the hazardous trees were publicly deemed “an emergency”.

In advocating for another vote to abolish the finance board, Cahill contends that they have “lost sight of their responsibilities” and “over stepped their job description.” Finance board members have pointed to the Town ordinance and State law to refute that charge. “The BOF, according to the Handbook for CT Boards of Finance, a guidebook for the application of the statutes, ‘has complete charge of the town government’s financial activities’,” member Perry Matchinis wrote in a response submitted to the Chronicle. “Its function is ‘to consider the town government’s finances from an overall viewpoint’,” Matchinis wrote, quoting the guidelines prescribed for the “Board of Finance Under Selectmen-Town Meeting Form of Government”.

Matchinis’s response reiterated statements made by finance board members when they voted to document their concerns with State agencies. “The focus of the Hampton BOF has always been, and will continue to be, protecting against violations of statutes, and crafting policies and procedures to protect the rights of citizens and prevent further unauthorized expenditures,” he wrote. Cahill, however, views their motivations differently, claiming the town is “at risk…physically and financially” due to the finance board’s “political biases and ignorance,” he stated. “The BOF’s dysfunction is debilitating for this town and it is time for the Board of Selectmen to move ahead without political roadblocks for the safety and well being of our town taxpayers and children. It is time to vote to dismantle the Board of Finance and get back to running the town with efficiency and fiscal responsibility.”

As of press time, the Governor has yet to establish guidelines that would allow for Town Meetings and Referenda.