Betterments, razing hut among meeting articles.

Byline: Debbie LaPlaca

CHARLTON - Whether the town should seek special state legislation to begin assessing water system betterments, raze the Quonset Hut on North Main Street and adopt a $22.1 million budget are among the questions voters will be asked to decide at the annual town meeting at 7 p.m. Monday at Charlton Middle School.

In financial matters, the meeting will open with nearly $1.5 million in the town's savings account, known as stabilization.

The operating budget for fiscal 2013, which begins July 1, has a $123,339 increase over this year. It is predicated on receiving $1.3 million in state aid, $15.4 million in property taxes and $2.2 million in local receipts.

The budget is to be balanced with $220,971 from the stabilization account. Town expense accounts were generally kept at current levels. Cost-of-living salary increases to meet bylaw and contractual obligations include 2.25 percent for nonunion employees, 2.5 percent for the fire union and 2 percent for the Highway Department union.

The Bay Path Regional Vocational Technical High School assessment is $1 million, or $132,912 more than this year. Budgeted for the Dudley-Charlton Regional School District is the full assessment request of $10.6 million, or $234,115 more than this year.

Capital expenditure requests with funding from stabilization include $80,000 to replace a failing municipal gas tank and $31,000 to raze the Quonset Hut that formerly served as the highway garage. Voters will be asked to appropriate $56,000 from sewer retained earnings to pave the sewer plant driveway.

The Water-Sewer Commission seeks approval to petition the state for special legislation that would permit betterments of up to 50 percent of estimated costs to abutters of the municipal water system.

Selectmen have sponsored an article that seeks to adopt the state's so-called "stretch energy" building code, which sets minimum design and construction requirements for energy efficiency in commercial and residential buildings. This measure was denied by voters at the October town meeting.

The Police Department is sponsoring a new bylaw to do state and federal fingerprint-based history checks on applicants for certain licenses.

Voters will consider a request to allow volunteers to give the gift of a property tax credit to senior citizens enrolled in the town's tax work-off program. Each year the town selects participants from applicants who are 60

or older, own a home, and live

in it. When participants complete 62.5 hours of work for various town departments, they receive a $500 property tax credit.

With the new provision, a volunteer, such as a family member, may substitute for seniors physically unable to perform the tasks required.