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Athol Town Manager Shaun Suhoski (left), State Auditor Diana DiZoglio (center) and Stow Town Administrator Denise Dembkoski gather at the Small Town Administrators annual meeting on June 15 in Boylston. During the meeting, DiZoglio outlined her priorities affecting rural communities, and STAM elected Dembkoski as its new chair, to succeed Suhoski.
Small Town Administrators of Massachusetts held its Annual Meeting on June 15 in Boylston to hear from state officials on a variety of topics and to elect a new leadership team.
State Auditor Diana DiZoglio outlined several priorities for her office, including support for issues of rural equity related to school funding and Chapter 90 formulas, reforms to the payments-in-lieu-of-taxes program, and the creation of an authority to support municipal buildings and public safety complexes. She introduced Jana DiNatale, who will be leading her office’s Division of Local Mandates as the current director, Ben Tafoya, takes on special projects for the office.
Inspector General Jeff Shapiro gave an overview on his office’s efforts to prevent “waste, fraud and abuse” of public funds as well as efforts to make the Massachusetts Certified Public Purchasing Official designation process more affordable to communities through a program to subsidize the training of one person per community to achieve the credential.
MMA Legislative Director Dave Koffman gave an update on the status of the state budget for fiscal 2024, as well as other legislative matters, while Chris Wilcock of the Division of Local Services discussed the duties and responsibilities of municipal assessors. Wilcock noted the dramatic improvements in the data and tools on the DLS website, particularly the Municipal Finance Training and Resource Center.
Anne Gobi, the state’s new director of rural affairs, stopped by the meeting to greet members and provide her contact information.
Weston Town Manager Leon Gaumond, Carlisle Town Administrator Ryan McLane, Hardwick Town Administrator Nicole Parker, and former Barre Town Administrator Jessica Sizer reprised their well-attended MMA Annual Meeting presentation on regionalization of services, including the need for cooperation among the parties without micro-management, having clear written agreements, engaging all stakeholders, and not being afraid to try a new approach whether it is embraced or not.
In official business, STAM elected Stow Town Administrator Denise Dembkoski as its new president, to succeed Athol Town Manager Shaun Suhoski.
Members also elected:
• Carlisle Town Administrator Ryan McLane as vice president
• Brookfield Town Administrator Kelli Robbins as treasurer
• Ashfield Town Administrator Paul McLatchy III as secretary
Former STAM Chair Andrea Llamas of Northfield presented STAM’s professional certification to Suhoski and McLane, just the ninth and 10th STAM members to be so recognized.
The group also adopted a series of bylaw changes and its first-ever set of legislative priorities, namely ensuring rural equity through:
• Inclusion of a “rural factor” in state programs and grants
• Reforming the payment-in-lieu-of-taxes formula
• Provision of funding and technical assistance to comply with the Votes Act
• Reforming the Chapter 90 formula and increasing total funding
• Creation of a municipal building assistance authority
• More engagement with smaller community leaders about hybrid and remote meeting requirements
STAM is a professional organization of nearly 100 chief administrative officials from communities across Massachusetts of fewer than 12,000 residents.
Written by Shaun Suhoski, Athol Town Manager