The focus of the Hampshire Council of Governments continues to be to help local governments save money and solve problems through regional cooperation, and a commitment to the concept of local control over local affairs. The combined dues for the Council of Governments in Fiscal Year 2009 were $37,206. Dues for all member towns have been reduced to ease the financial burden to the municipalities while increasing the stability of the Council membership. The dues collected help support Council programs, services, and assistance to a variety of programs. It is the continued goal of the Council to increase revenues from a variety of sources to offset the reduced assessment and to expand services.

The Council achieved two of its major goals this past fiscal year. The Electricity Program has expanded into the five Western Counties of Massachusetts - Hampshire, Franklin, Hampden, Worcester, and Berkshire counties. Additionally, during FY09 the Council prepared for the eventual sale of Hampshire Care to the Masonic Health System of Massachusetts, a non-profit corporation. The elected Commissioners, now Councilors of Hampshire County, have provided public oversight to this health care facility since 1914 since it was the County Sanatorium for the treatment of Tuberculosis. In 1997 the facility changed its name and its function and became Hampshire Care, a rehabilitation and skilled nursing facility. The Council is proud of its stewardship of this very important facility which has been providing high quality health care to the citizens of the county for 85 years. Given the current economics of health care, it was no longer possible for the Council to run Hampshire Care without losing money. However, although the Council will no longer act as trustees for this fine facility, we are very pleased that Hampshire Care will continue to provide a high quality of service and even expand its offerings under the direction of the Masons. Going forward, the Council will continue to provide health services to the citizens of Hampshire County through the Tobacco Free grant and the Wellness programs offered through the Insurance Trust.

Fiscal Year 2009 was a very busy one for Hampshire Power, a year that brought change and significant growth to the program. To accommodate the load increase, the Council contracted with Energy Services Group of Rockland, Massachusetts, for a software system to manage customer enrollments, billing, and account management. The new system is very powerful and capable, and has reduced staff time spent on manual data entry and manipulation, while making it possible for the program to grow in the future. New customers were enrolled in Worcester, Hampden, and Berkshire Counties, including several new businesses. The two rate plans of Profit Sharing and Real-Time continued to be offered through the fiscal year, but staff worked toward developing a fixed price plan for the coming year. FY09 was also a profitable year, with $203,953.90 generated in profit rebates to be returned to Profit-Sharing customers. Real-Time customers saved $504,172 compared to utility prices during the year. The program continues to serve the citizens of the region by sharing the savings from bulk power purchasing and efficient management. Hampshire Power staff are excited about the program’s successes, and eager to see it continue to expand and flourish, bringing affordable power to western Massachusetts.

The Cooperative Purchasing program, now in its 29th year, coordinates and administers a formal bidding process on behalf of Council departments, municipalities, school districts, human service agencies, and miscellaneous governmental entities throughout the Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden, and Hampshire County region. Buying in bulk generates added savings over lone bidding efforts while complying with state procurement statutes and eliminating duplication of administrative work. The total purchasing volume for goods and services for Fiscal Year 2009 was $5.8 million with a projected savings of $863,395.

In a year when many towns are facing double-digit rate increases in health insurance premiums, our towns once again held their costs to single-digit increases. The Hampshire Councilors serve as the trustees of the Hampshire County Group Insurance Trust, a cooperative effort to provide health and life insurance with excellent benefits at competitive rates. An Insurance Advisory Committee, made up of representatives of all participating units, meets regularly to discuss problems and possible solutions and to explore new ideas. The Trust manages a self-funded group of health insurance products. The Insurance Year 2009, April 1, 2008, to March 31, 2009, collective premium for the Trust was $40M. Through the efforts and expertise of the Trust management, the volume of participation in the program, and the participation of the town representatives on the Advisory Board, the Insurance Trust is successful at managing costs while providing excellent benefits.

The Regional Services Department develops regional approaches to problems shared by Hampshire County municipalities. Department personnel are primarily involved with sales, account analysis, and program development for Hampshire Power. In addition, the department continues to secure surplus federal equipment for various Massachusetts municipalities and state entities. The current net savings of property delivered to member communities for Fiscal Year 2009, after fees and delivery charges, totaled $18,274. Member communities receive a discount on the fees, as well as the right of first refusal on nicer pieces of equipment obtained through the surplus program. The availability of federal surplus property in New England continues to dwindle, but we are in hopes that this will change.

Regional Services continued its oversight of the Hampshire Inspection Program which provides building inspection and zoning enforcement services for Chesterfield, Goshen, Huntington, Middlefield, and Williamsburg. Three hundred and thirty-six building permits were issued in 2008. Of these, 13 permits were for new homes. The severe economic downturn in the second half of 2008 put a definite halt to construction of new homes, yet more permits were issued this year than last, mostly due to small renovation projects, repairs, and wood stove installations. While permit activity has increased since last year, most towns have seen a decrease in fees collected. This is due to the small minimum fee collected for smaller projects. The new State Building Code, the seventh edition, went into effect this year. Many changes appear in the new code, requiring numerous training sessions to keep current. The code is a living document and many amendments have been made since it was first introduced. Emergency inspection services are also available for other towns not in the program for an hourly fee.

The Council continued to provide Health and Wellness programs through the Tobacco Free Community Partnership funded by the State Department of Public Health and the Wellness Initiative, a workplace wellness program provided by the Hampshire County Group Insurance Trust. The Tobacco Free Community Partnership conducts compliance checks to monitor the illegal sale of tobacco products to minors, and provides education on the health and economic effects of tobacco. In addition the program sponsors a western mass smoke free apartment website for both landlords interested in making their buildings smoke free and tenants interested in finding smoke free apartments. Landlords can list their smoke free apartments for free. The website can be found at www.smokefree.hampshirecog.org, The Wellness Initiative is a worksite wellness program working with 70 municipal units to identify the needs and interests of subscribers and to provide information, education and programs promoting healthier choices.

For further information on Council programs, expenses, and revenues, please contact the Councilors’ Office at 413-584-1300 ext. 2. You may also visit the Council website at www.hampshirecog.org.