Select Board splits over whether to issue RFP for assessing services after contract increase

The New Durham Select Board spent a substantial part of its meeting debating whether to issue a request for proposals for the town's assessing services after recent contract increases and transition work.

One select board member urged putting the contract out to bid, noting a prior increase from figures the member recalled as about $174,000 to $350,000 across a five‑year term and saying "we owe it to the taxpayer to put that out to bid." Another board member said that the current vendor had undertaken difficult cleanup and transition work and supported continuation for continuity and to honor that effort.

The chair said the board's immediate priority is budget transparency and ensuring department heads and the newly hired finance manager provide accurate numbers before issuing an RFP; the chair moved to rescind a prior direction and focus on getting the budget housekeeping complete. The discussion included procedural confusion over phrasing of motions; after debate, the board considered a motion asking the town administrator to prepare an RFP for assessing services and to bring it back for vote. Members disagreed on the wording and intent; the transcript records inconsistent calls of "motion passes" and "motion failed" amid clarifications.

Board members asked staff to provide clearer financial context — what work the current contractor performed, what extra cleanup costs were incurred after a messy transition, and whether some of the higher figure in the current contract represented a not‑to‑exceed contingency rather than guaranteed spending. The board did not finalize a procurement award; members directed the town administrator and finance manager to assemble documentation, clarification of contract terms and the fiscal impacts, and to return with a clear motion for or against issuing an RFP.