Shall the Town of Hampton vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $183,539 for the cost of Hampton’s contribution to twenty-one (21) human service agencies in the Seacoast in the amounts corresponding to the agencies’ requests in the right-hand columns as follows:
These twenty-one (21) human service agencies shall each be required to give a written report at the end of the calendar or fiscal year 2021 to the Board of Selectmen highlighting what the funds were used for and what impact the funds had in assisting to achieve their goals and objectives? (Majority vote required)
NOTE: Lamprey Health Sr. Transportation has discontinued their service and Rockingham Meals on Wheels has taken responsibility for same.
What it means: Each of the listed agencies will receive a donation from the town in the noted amount. The funds raised and donated last year are provided for comparison. This is an “all or none” Warrant Article. If the Article passes, all the listed agencies receive the specified donations. If it fails, none do.
Those in favor say: This is something we do every year. These agencies handle issues that the Town would need to handle if the agencies were not, so these donations avoid other, possibly higher taxpayer expenses.
Those against say: This sort of funding should be voluntary, not mandated via property taxes. A person should not be required to support all of these agencies if he or she does not wish to do so for any reason.
Fiscal Impact: A household valued at $400,000 would see a tax increase of $19.20 in 2021 if Article 16 is approved. Cost per thousand dollars of valuation is 4.8 cents in 2021.
The link below when clicked will open in a new tab on your device. It provides individual links to the websites of the agencies listed, if you wish to learn more about them.