Shall the Town of Hampton vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $5,000, said sum of $5,000 to come from the Unassigned Fund Balance, a fund containing unexpended appropriations from prior years, as of December 31, 2015, and with no amount to be raised from taxation, to provide partial funding for the planning of a Town War Memorial dedicated to the Town’s sons and daughters who have served in the Militia for the protection of the community in Colonial Wars from 1638 to 1774, and who have fought in wars for our Nation from 1775 to date, and to provide appropriate space on such memorial for those who shall serve in future wars. The Board of Selectmen to work with the Hampton Post 35 of the American Legion and such individuals as the Board of Selectmen shall appoint to plan the memorial, and its place of erection on a parcel of Town owned land, and to authorize the Board of Selectmen to apply for, accept, and expend for such purpose any funds from the State of New Hampshire, the Federal Government, or any private source, as may become available, to add to the sum. This shall be a non-lapsing appropriation per RSA 32:7, VI and will not lapse until the project is completed or by March 31, 2019, whichever is sooner? (Majority vote required.)

What it means: This Article would support the withdrawal from surplus funds in the amount of $5,000 to create a memorial to those from Hampton who have served in various conflicts on behalf of their country. The memorial would list the more than 2,000 people who served from 1638 – 1774, and from 1775 – present.

Those in favor say: Several speakers, including a representative from the American Legion Post, expressed support for this Article.

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

Fiscal Impact: There is no direct tax impact, however the $5000 would not go into the General Fund to help offset taxes. This is expected to be a one-time expenditure.

Shall the Town of Hampton vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $20,000 to be placed in the Hampton Conservation Fund; this fund is used to “acquire, maintain, improve, protect or limit the future use of, or otherwise conserve and properly utilize,” open spaces and conservation easements in Hampton in accordance with RSA 36-A: Sections 1 through 4, inclusive. Recent acquisitions such as the Batchelder Farm Conservation Easement have significantly reduced the size of the Fund. The goal is to return the Fund to adequate levels to enable the Commission to conserve additional lands on behalf of the Town of Hampton. The Conservation Fund contains previously approved appropriations or gifts, for the same or similar purposes that have been made to the “Conservation Commission Accumulation Fund,” the “Conservation Land Fund,” and the “Conservation Land Acquisition Fund”? (Majority vote required.)

 What it means: This fund is a way of saving for opportunities, similar to the Capital Reserve Fund. Voter approval of this Article each year is primarily how the Conservation Commission replenishes the fund it uses to preserve and maintain open spaces.

Those in favor say: The Town needs to support conservation land for the recreational value as well as to help with excess storm water.

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

Fiscal Impact: The average Hampton home valued at $329,000 would bear an increased tax cost of $2.30 if this Article passes.

Shall the Town of Hampton vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $0 for the replacing, upgrading and modifying of the existing computer system operated by the IT division under the Finance Department and authorize the withdrawal of $0 from the Management Information Systems Capital Reserve Fund created for that purpose by Article 27 of the 1997 Town Meeting; And To vote, after the foregoing withdrawal of the sum of $0 is made, to maintain the said Management Information Systems Capital Reserve Fund? (Majority vote required.)

 What it means: This Article was nullified at Deliberative Session. Those in attendance decided they did not like the Article. By changing the dollar amount to $0 and changing it to “maintain” the account (as opposed to the original wording to “discontinue” the account) they essentially took it off the docket for voters to approve or disapprove. It won’t matter if the Article passes or fails, the status quo will remain in place.

Fiscal Impact: No tax impact.

Shall the Town of Hampton vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $45,364 to bring the Fire Prevention Secretary position to a 40-hour per week full-time status. This shall be a non-lapsing appropriation per RSA 32:7, VI and shall not lapse until the hiring is complete or by March 31, 2017, whichever is sooner? (Majority vote required.)

Note: Warrant article figure presented is for 39 weeks from April 1 to December 31, 2016, the amount cost thereafter is $60,486.

 What it means: The Fire Prevention Secretary is responsible for working with developers and individuals who require fire permits; reviewing and registering plans; taking calls from the public; handling state and local reporting, etc. The position is currently part time, which means that the job is handled by Fire Officers when the part-timer is not on duty. As development has picked up in town, the Department is requesting that the secretarial position become full time to cover these responsibilities during the full business day.

Those in favor say: The level of activity in the Fire Prevention Office has increased with the improving economy and the increase in new building permits. Contractors need someone to go to and event planners need help understanding requirements. The amount of billing going on is unprecedented. Using Fire Officers to handle these duties when the Secretary is not on duty is not a good use of higher paid staff. There was a full time secretary at one time. It helped everyone in the community, and the operation was much smoother.

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

Fiscal Impact: The average Hampton home valued at $329,000 would bear an increased tax cost of $5.26 if this Article passes. This appropriation request impacts future years as well, since the increased hours are expected to continue as long as the workload persists.

Shall the Town of Hampton vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $90,000 to carry out all lawful functions allowed under federal, state and local criminal justice forfeiture programs and to authorize the withdrawal of that amount from the Police Forfeiture Special Revenue Fund created for that purpose under Article 55 of the 2003 Town Meeting? (Majority vote required.)

What it means: During normal police operations, items of value may be forfeited by individuals. There are expenses associated with the management of such property, including storage, auctioning, returning items where appropriate, etc. NH law permits the auctioning of this property where appropriate, and the funds so received are put into a fund. This Article seeks approval to use the funds to cover the cost of managing the forfeiture process.

Those in favor say: This is a standard, annual procedure.

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

Fiscal Impact: No tax impact.

Shall the Town of Hampton vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $174,475 for the cost of Hampton’s contribution to twenty (20) human service agencies in the Seacoast in the amounts corresponding to the agencies’ requests in the right hand columns as follows:

These twenty human service agencies shall each be required to give a written re port at the end of the calendar year 2016 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).

 What it means: Each of the listed agencies will receive a donation from the town in the

Noted amount. The funds raised and donated in 2015 are also noted. The difference, where there is one, came by way of request from the agency. 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. Note that “A Safe Place” has merged with Seacoast Assault Services and their requested amounts have been combined.

Those in favor say: This is something we do every year. These agencies handle social issues that the town would be dealing with if the agencies were not.

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 has a philosophical disagreement with one or more on the list. No other town has mandated charitable giving.

Fiscal Impact: The average Hampton home valued at $329,000 would bear an increased tax cost of $20.73 if this Article passes. Passing the Article affects 2016 only.

Shall the Town of Hampton vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $45,650 for the maintenance, repair, re-construction and replacement of sidewalks, as needed, including $5,000 for the installation of ADA compliant ramps at crosswalks. This shall be a non-lapsing appropriation per RSA 32:7, VI and shall not lapse until this project is completed or by March 31, 2017, whichever is sooner? (Majority vote required)

What it means: The requested funding will be used to make needed sidewalk repairs.

Those in favor say: DPW will use a mix of internal resources and outside contracting to get as much done as possible while controlling costs.

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

Fiscal Impact: The average Hampton home valued at $329,000 would bear an increased tax cost of $5.26 if this Article passes. This is a one-time cost impact.