Article 37: Convert Stored Paper Documents to Electronic Format ($50,000)

Shall the Town of Hampton vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $50,000 to continue the process of converting stored paper documents to electronic format as authorized by Chapter 226 of the Acts of 2016, with said sum of $50,000 to come from the Unassigned Fund Balance. This shall be a non-lapsing appropriation per RSA 32:7, VI and shall not lapse until the purpose is completed or by March 31, 2021, whichever occurs sooner? (Majority vote required)

What it means: Certain town records are required to be kept indefinitely.  As the years go by and the population grows, the number of documents and the space required grows exponentially.  This Article approves the use of unexpended funds from prior years to be used to continue the process of preserving the documents in an electronic format.

Those in favor say: Having historical documents in electronic form makes them more accessible for all.  It also helps to reduce the space required to store older documents.

Those against say: No one spoke against this article at the Deliberative Session.

Fiscal impact: There is no tax impact because the money was appropriated in prior tax years.  This Article is allowing the withdrawal of the money from the fund for the specified purpose.