Oakham Board of Selectmen Approves $63,967 Transfer, Hears Assessors Staffing Alarm

Board of Selectmen · Meeting of June 29, 2026

Oakham Board of Selectmen clears a $63,967 snow and ice deficit and hears urgent warning about the Board of Assessors. At a special meeting Monday, the board approved a year-end line item transfer drawing from highway, town clerk, fire, and other departmental salary and expense lines to cover a FY26 snow removal shortfall of $63,967.29, which will go to the Finance Committee for final approval. Board of Assessors member Susan Turnbull told the Board of Selectmen the three-member assessors board is losing members and she cannot carry the office alone: "When you become a Board of One, you're going to have a Board of Zero because I am not qualified to take over from a professional assessor who has been doing this job for at least 15 years." Turnbull said the town's contracted assessing firm, RGG, cannot fill the gap, and the office's duties, including personal property taxes, chapter land calculations, and pilot-in-lieu-of-tax work, exceed the contracted scope.

The board also processed a full slate of FY27 appointments and learned the current town clerk intends to leave by September 1, weeks before September primaries and a November federal election.

In the full story:

• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report, 2,665 words

Source: the Board of Selectmen meeting of June 29, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.