The 2023 Belknap County Budget would make for a most interesting case study for students enrolled in a graduate school program and course in public administration. At the same time, examining the process—and especially the decisions made around the processes and procedures adopted by the Delegation’s Budget Committee, cries out to me for corrections and improvements to be made prior to next year.
The Delegation’s majority chose by election to constitute a Budget Committee comprised of seven of its Members, at least six of whom had not served on prior Delegation Budget Committees. Representative Barbara Comtois (Barnstead), the only Delegation Member with prior experience, having served on several Delegation Budget Committees, was passed over. So was I, despite my decades of budgeting experience with other local and regional governing bodies.
Predictably, the lack of experience represented by this year’s Budget Committee resulted in mistakes and misjudgments, not so much on numbers, but rather with respect to a commitment to adopting and carrying out a lawful, fully informed, deliberative, transparent, and engaging process. The meetings that had not been properly noticed effectively precluded public awareness and the opportunity for input. The only time Public Comment was allowed on the recommended budget was at the March 29 meeting—figuratively speaking, at one minute to midnight.
The House Finance Committee invited legislators to Concord on April 4 for a presentation of the committee’s recommended state budget. A handout included a detailed summary for each major category, as well as the budget by line items. As the recommended state budget was scheduled for House action on April 6, time was thus provided for Representatives to study it, discuss it, and provide opportunities for floor amendments to be filed.
In contrast, the Belknap County Budget was presented to Members of the Delegation for the first time on the very night it was moved for adoption. No doubt dating myself, I recall to mind the saying of exasperation, “That’s no way to run a railroad!” Rather, best practices would indicate that the budget the Delegation was being asked to act upon should have been sent to each member of the Delegation as soon as practicably possible following its approval by the Budget Committee—in other words, comfortably prior to March 29.
No doubt the current Delegation governing majority will learn from and correct some of this year’s errors of omission and commission. I hope that among any other changes, the Budget Committee makes will be one that extends an invitation to all Delegation Members and the public to provide constructive criticism of this year’s experience and seek suggestions for adoption of a much more inclusive, inviting, and engaging set of principles, processes, and procedures to be followed in 2024, all in full accordance with the law.
Not only do all the Members of the Belknap County Delegation deserve better next year, but also the citizens and taxpayers of Belknap County.
