Hatfield Approves 4.3 Percent Raise for Town Workers, Boosts Health Insurance

HATFIELD -- April 20, 2021, Hatfield Select Board approves raises, insurance boost, and parade plans ahead of annual town meeting. Meeting jointly with the Finance Committee on April 20, the board backed a combined 4.3 percent salary increase, roughly $85,000, for non-school municipal employees who have gone without raises for at least two consecutive years, and voted unanimously to raise the town's health insurance contribution from 50 percent to 55 percent. The FY22 school appropriation was confirmed at $4,785,748.20, offset in part by $93,000 in COVID relief funds. A citizen petition with enough certified signatures to force a town meeting vote on rescinding the Route 5 and 10 sewer project was formally acknowledged, and the board voted to publish a legal notice of a May 4 quorum discussion with Town Moderator Joe Lavallee. The Historical Commission proposed using Community Preservation Act funds to purchase an antique home in Hatfield center as a permanent museum site, drawing interest from the board after the Smith College Alumni Association offered to donate Sophia Smith furniture and artifacts to the town.