[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Meeting of the Town of Dalton 5-5-2025 ATM by Art. 28. Amendments noted where applicable.]
A Capital Planning Committee is hereby established (hereinafter "the Committee"). Its purpose will be to develop a Capital Improvement Plan (CIP), evaluate the financial effect of proposed expenditures and make recommendations for the priority and funding of items submitted for consideration. The Committee will consider capital expenditures, and extraordinary expenses. For purposes of this bylaw, capital expenditures are defined as the request for town funding of an item(s) that will be bonded over multiple years. For the purposes of this by-law, extraordinary expenses are defined as any request for town funding of capital or expense items submitted outside of the Dalton's operating budget in the form of an independent town meeting article(s).
The Committee shall be composed of nine members as follows below. Members representing Town Residents, the Planning Board and Finance Committee shall be appointed and ratified in accordance with the "Town Manager Act", Chapter 137 of the Acts of 1995, Section 4, paragraph 5.
A. 
Members:
(1) 
The Town Manager.
(2) 
Two members at large, who shall be residents of the Town.
(3) 
Two members of the Finance Committee.
(4) 
One member of the Planning Board.
(5) 
The Town Planner.
(6) 
The Principal Assessor.
(7) 
The Town Accountant, or Finance Director, if the Town shall have created said position.
B. 
The Town Manager, Town Planner, Principal Assessor and Town Accountant are ex-officio members of the committee through their term of employment with the Town of Dalton, The members of the Finance Committee and Planning Board shall be recommended to the Town Manager by their respective boards and, if appointed, shall also serve ex-officio during their term of office.
C. 
Terms of the members at large shall be for three years provided that at the inception of the committee, one member shall be appointed for two years and one for three years.
The Committee is charged with the responsibility of reviewing all potential and proposed capital and extraordinary expense items and to submit an annual CIP to the Town Manager pursuant to the requirement of the "Town Manager Act," Ch. 137 of the Acts of 1995, Section 6 (C). The CIP shall include a) a recommended capital and extraordinary expense plan/budget for the coming year and b) a capital and extraordinary expense budget for the following four (4) years, which will include all anticipated and continuing capital and extraordinary expenditures. In developing the CIP, the committee shall also prepare a CIP financing plan consisting of a five-year forecast of revenues and expenses which shall consider the ability of the Town to pay debt service on any borrowings therefor, what Free Cash and or Stabilization Funds may be available, and what Federal or state aid may be available for said purposes.
To support the best possible report and its most effective use, the following guidelines are to be followed:
A. 
All officers, department heads, boards and committees, and inter/intra-municipal entities shall, on or before October 15 of each year, give to the Committee requests concerning all capital expenditures or extraordinary expenses they anticipate proposing for the next five (5) years. The Committee shall act on emergency requests as deemed necessary.
B. 
The Committee shall consider all requests noted above in Subsection A and, while doing so, may confer with any Town officer, department, board or committee or request additional information it determines is needed in order to evaluate and prioritize submitted items.
C. 
The Committee shall consider the relative need, impact, timing and cost of proposed capital ependitures or extraordinary expenses and the effect each will have on the financial position of the Town. In evaluating and scheduling the requests, the Committee will consider the following criteria:
(1) 
Risks to public safety or health.
(2) 
Reliability of services.
(3) 
Deterioration of Town facilities and infrastructure.
(4) 
Requirements of state or federal laws or regulations.
(5) 
Improvement of operating efficiency.
(6) 
Potential as a financially viable enterprise opportunity.
(7) 
Systematic replacement of major equipment and vehicles.
(8) 
Recommendations of Emergency Management Plan, Municipal Vulnerability Plan, and Climate Action Plan.
(9) 
Recommendations of Town Master Plan.
(10) 
Coordination with other Capital requests and existing debt.
(11) 
Equitable provision of services and facilities.
(12) 
Educational, historical, cultural or community value.
D. 
Each year on or before January 31, the Committee shall submit the CIP to the Town Manager.
E. 
The Committee shall meet when necessary and at a minimum of semi-monthly in the months of October, November, December and January. Additionally, upon finalizing the CIP, representatives of the Committee will meet with the Town Manager, who shall if he finds the submission acceptable, transmit said plan to the Select Board and the Finance Committee.
F. 
The Committee shall annually make use of any and all technical assistance provided by the Department of Revenue Division of Local Services.