Prompted by a discussion over the town charter, the Board of Health on Monday expressed concerns over proposed changes to its structure.
Chair Nasiba Mannan led the discussion by noting the Town Charter Review Committee, which will hold its inaugural meeting Wednesday, is looking for recommendations and feedback from town departments and committees as it undertakes the review process.
Health Director Shaun McAuliffe told the board that he and other department heads are looking to recommend a change allowing them to petition the town manager to approve basic hirings.
“The only other [change] that’s part of our strategic plan … it’s for discussion about moving the board from three to five,” said McAuliffe.
The Health Department finalized its strategic plan last year. One of its major proposals is an expansion of the Board of Health from three to five members. McAuliffe told the board last year that expanding the board would improve collaboration and decision making.
Members had expressed support for the idea initially. Mannan admitted during Monday’s meeting that her opinion had changed.
“I was totally for it, but now it concerns me,” she said. “With the current environment, it kind of worries me if we can find the right people.”
Vice chair Mary Jo Ondrechen agreed. “I’m very worried about finding qualified people,” she said. “It’s hard enough to find one person to run every year.”
Ondrechen went on to claim that “eliminating partisan elections has opened up a serious vulnerability” in the Town Election process.
She said that under the previous system, the Hopkinton Democratic and Republican town committees could vet candidates prior to pulling papers. However, candidate nomination by party caucuses was eliminated following a vote at Special Town Meeting in 2023.
“Is there any way to have a vetting system?” member Malcolm Smith asked.
Mannan replied that since the board positions are elected, no resident can be prevented from running. “We want people who have some type of experience or background with health care or boards and towns, and that has been a challenge,” she added.
Minor budget cuts for FY 27
McAuliffe informed the Board of Health that following consultation with the town manager and chief financial officer, he had eliminated $4,000 in operating costs for the department’s fiscal year 2027 budget.
Half of the $4,000 came from what McAuliffe described as a “miscellaneous line item” that he could pay for through the department’s revolving fund. The remaining $2,000 comes from eliminating environmental sampling.
“It’s not necessary,” said McAuliffe, “and I can always find money here or there to do environmental sampling.”
The cuts were made despite the fact that the Health Department’s proposed FY 27 budget meets this year’s level-service budget messaging.
McAuliffe said that in exchange for the cuts, the town offered to cover some of the department’s training costs. He added that training would be a sticking point in the coming year as changes in the regional public health system take place.
“The collaboratives are all going to go away likely this time next year,” said McAuliffe. “Right now, they’re covering all of our training, all of our conferences where we get our [continuing education units] and just a lot of other miscellaneous costs.”
Added McAuliffe: “That’s all going to disappear.”
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