After attending the on-line Zoom Grafton County Commissioners’ Meetings every Tuesday morning for the last year and a half, I have come to learn much about County goings-on. In turn, I feel I must alert Grafton County residents and taxpayers of important up-coming monetary decisions. And you thought Paul Revere died in Boston on May 10, 1818? His spirit lives on!
Let me start with the proposed 2027 Grafton County Budget. I congratulate Grafton County Commissioners Martha McLeod (Chairwoman), District 2, Commissioner Wendy Piper, District 1, and Commissioner Katie Hedberg, District 3, and County Administrator, Julie Libby, for “cracking the whip” thereby cutting next year’s County Budget from 16.78% to 8.78% by requesting Department Heads (Nursing Home, Department of Corrections, County Farm, Administration, County Maintenance, etc.) to only present their respective annual department financial requests based upon “bare needs,” thus discarding “unnecessary wants.”
Based upon those parameters, the 2027 Grafton County Budget dropped to $60,538,968.00 with $33,164,292.00 to be raised by taxes! Grant-funding is down!
The Grafton County Delegation Executive Committee, made up of certain Grafton County Representatives, will be meeting on Monday, May 11, 2026 @ 9:00 am – 11:00 am, and a complete DELEGATION MEETING (all Grafton County Representatives) will be held that same day from 11:00 am – 1:00 pm “to set elected official salaries”!
I urge all Grafton County residents & taxpayers to ZOOM-IN by clicking on the County website (grafton-county.com), clicking on the 3 lines in the upper, right corner, and then clicking on “Meeting Schedule.” Scroll down to May 11, 2026 “Executive Committee Meeting,” open and type your name when directed. You’ll be able to “hear” and see the meeting.
The Courthouse is still under discussion with architect & Commissioner revisions. Presently, they are presenting us a proposed $48,319,843.00, up from $46,018,898.00 and down-sizing the building by 697 sq. ft. Taking out a 25-30-year loan (bond) may raise the cost of building another courthouse in No. Haverhill to the upper 90-million dollars range! AND, we’re still paying on the jail bond to the tune of another $12 – $16 million. Stay tuned.
by Nick De Mayo, M. Ed., Sugar Hill, NH • (603) 823-9816