Hadley Finance Committee Approves Department Liaisons, Reviews FY26 Budget Gap

HADLEY — March 12, 2025 — Hadley Finance Committee assigns department liaisons and confronts a nearly $500,000 structural budget gap heading into Town Meeting. The committee unanimously approved liaison assignments pairing each of its five members with interested town departments — including DPW, Public Safety, the Library, the Board of Health, and Hadley Media — and named Chair Amy Feiden as its representative on the newly formed Town Administrator Selection Committee, with Paul Benjamin as alternate; the search is being managed by Paradigm, a Western Massachusetts executive-placement firm with roughly 15 applicants under review. Finance Director Feiden told the committee that FY26 department budgets grew $1.3 million against only $825,000 in new revenue, with an additional $1.155 million in red-flagged unfunded departmental requests bringing total unmet demand to roughly $2.2 million; the gap was closed through free cash, a $190,000 OPEB contribution redirect, a stabilization fund draw for the ambulance, and $95,000 in opioid settlement funds. On a brighter note, Feiden reported the town's OPEB trust has reached $2.8 million — 25 percent of total outstanding liability — placing Hadley at the 75th percentile among Massachusetts municipalities.