The Town Council took a required vote on a proposed revised purchasing policy put forth by councilor Shawn Faber, at last week’s meeting.
According to a memo presented to the Council, “The Town Council adopted a purchasing policy contained within Town Code, Chapter VI on June 3, 2002, which was subsequently amended on May 5, 2007, again on Nov. 7, 2011, and by resolution on April 1, 2013. On Sept. 15, 2025, Ordinance 2025-09 rescinded Town Code Chapter VI and renumbered it as ADM-910. Councilor Faber has proposed a new policy (procedure) which would make changes to the existing policy and shift approval for all consulting agreements for professional services from the Town Manager to the Town Council. Further, approval for many other expenditures will shift the authority of the approval from the Town Manager to the Town Council.”
At the previous meeting, Faber explained that he and Town Manager Shaun Mulholland had worked through the two versions of the policy they had been developing.
“I think we got to a good operational place with it,” Faber said at the time, noting he was bringing the proposal forward for a vote.
Mulholland said he and Faber made a number of improvements to the original draft but acknowledged that issues remained.
“Our current policy has had issues,” Mulholland said. “And we have a new policy that doesn’t quite solve all of those issues.” He recommended a more thorough review before adoption and said department heads should have an opportunity to weigh in. “It’s missing a lot of things,” he added, noting he hoped to implement a revised policy in the spring. He added that staff has not had time to review and fest the proposed policy.
At the prior meeting, Councilor Dan Bouchard invoked councilor privilege, delaying the vote until the Feb. 17 session.
Bouchard cited correspondence between legal counsel and councilors, but had not received it by the time of the vote. He agreed the current policy is outdated and should be updated, but said the proposal before them did not resolve all concerns.
Bouchard brought those same concerns forward at the Feb. 17 meeting, saying, “We should wait and do this right the first time,” Bouchard said, adding that staff input had not yet been gathered.
He listed numerous issues he had with the proposal, including: Federal Grant Language; RFQ Process; Bidding Processes; Insurance Requirements, Vendor Suspension; and more.
Councilor Ted Combs felt that the board should move forward with a vote, stating the Town Manager and Faber wouldn’t have brought it forward if it wasn’t ready and wasn’t approved by the attorney.
Assistant Town Manager Kellie Caron noted that the Town Manager had made his position clear, which is why Faber’s name appeared on the cover sheet. Faber nor Mulholland were present at the meeting.
At two previous meetings Mulholland had stated the proposed policy by Faber wasn’t ready.
Councilor Deb Paul said she felt some of the language in the proposed policy appeared directed at her, specifically regarding legal notices, which she said could prevent the Londonderry Times, the paper she publishes, from receiving them. She also said the process felt rushed.
Paul explained that legal notices are governed by state requirements and that the newspaper went through a bid process before being awarded the contract.
Despite the requests to hold off on the proposed policy, the vote failed on a 2-2 split.