2022 Budget & Finance Workshop

The Budget and Finance workshop is targeted to municipal officials and employees involved in the budgeting process, including members of governing bodies and budget committees, town managers, administrators, and finance staff.

PROGRAM

9:00 am – Welcome Remarks
Margaret Byrnes, Executive Director, NH Municipal Association

9:05 am – 10:30 am
Fundamentals of the Municipal Budget Process
Using the 2022 edition of NHMA’s Basic Law of Budgeting as a guide, this full-morning session will address all aspects of the municipal budget process focusing on appropriations, gross-basis budgeting, separate vs. special warrant articles, multi-year contracts, transfers, lapse of appropriations, spending limitations, no-means-no, duties of official budget committees, disallowed appropriations, special budget requirements under the SB 2 process (official ballot voting) including recent law changes, and other topics.  This session is a must for members of governing bodies, budget committees, and other local officials involved in the budget process.  Ample time will be provided for questions.
Stephen Buckley, Legal Services Counsel, NH Municipal Association
Jonathan Cowal, Municipal Services Counsel, NH Municipal Association

10:30 am – 10:45 am - Morning Break

10:45am – 12:00 pm - Fundamentals of the Municipal Budget Process (continued)

12:00 pm – 1:00 pm - Lunch Break               

1:00 pm – 2:15 pm
You Have Questions?  We Have Answers!
This always popular Q&A session will provide answers to your burning budget questions as well as inquiries posed by other participants.  Bring those gnawing budget questions to the NHMA panel of experts.  We’ll do our best to answer on the spot, and if we can’t (which happens on rare occasions) we promise to follow up with you after the workshop. 
Stephen Buckley, Legal Services Counsel, NH Municipal Association
Jonathan Cowal, Municipal Services Counsel, NH Municipal Association
Katherine Heck, Government Finance Advisor, NH Municipal Association

2:15 pm – 3:30 pm
Funding Infrastructure Projects in Your Community-Sewer/Water/Roads/Bridges/Broadband
Learn how to access and use to municipal benefit the Clean Water State Revolving Fund for sewer projects, and the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund  for drinking water projects from NHDES; highway and bridge funding from NHDOT; and broadband deployment from SWRPC.
Beth L. Malcolm, NH Department of Environmental Services
Johnna McKenna, NH Department of Environmental Services
Henry Underwood, Southwest Regional Planning Commission
Bill Watson, NH Department of Transportation

3:30 pm – 3:45 pm - Afternoon Break

3:45 pm – 4:45 pm
Understanding State Aid to Municipalities
Review of municipal funding through the biennial state budget process, and additional one-time state aid, and how these funding sources affect the setting of the local tax rate.
Katherine Heck, Government Finance Advisor, NH Municipal Association