Finance Panel Votes to Shift Free Cash to Boiler Fund

Finance Committee · Meeting of April 8, 2026

Paxton Finance Committee voted to shift $11,353 in free cash to the capital depreciation fund amid a boiler dispute. The committee approved a $4,224.99 reserve fund transfer to cover a depleted legal services account, which had a $38,774.33 balance, after one member warned "inadequate budgeting is not considered criteria for a reserve fund transfer." Member David Bloom made the motion to reduce the town's free cash line from $511,353 to $500,000, pushing the budget deficit back to roughly $640,000, the figure already locked into the town's override ballot question. Members said the town and Wachusett Regional School District remain in a "food fight" over who pays the remaining $35,000 to replace a boiler at Paxton Center School.

A separate $350,000 warrant article would let the DPW buy three used vehicles instead of paying more than $1 million for new ones. The committee moved its next meeting to Thursday, April 16, to review warrant articles.

In the full story:

• The Full Story
• Why It Matters
• Key Motions & Votes
• Source
• Paxton's community access TV: Finance Committee meeting, April 8, 2026
• The complete report: 860 words

Source: the Finance Committee meeting of April 8, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript.