Glossary

Words that come up in agendas, minutes, and their summaries, and what they mean.

abatement: A reduction or cancellation of a property tax bill, granted by the assessors, for example after an error in the assessment.
ADA: Americans with Disabilities Act, the federal law on access for people with disabilities.
BMA: Board of Mayor and Aldermen, the city's governing body: the mayor and 14 aldermen.
CBA: Collective bargaining agreement: a contract between the city or town and a union of its employees, setting pay and working conditions.
CDBG: Community Development Block Grant: federal money, from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, for housing and neighborhood projects that serve low- and moderate-income residents.
CIP: Community Improvement Program: the city's plan for paying for capital projects and special programs, with grants, city bonds, and city cash. The Board of Mayor and Aldermen adopts one each year.
COLA: Cost-of-living adjustment: a raise in pay or a pension to keep up with rising prices.
Committee of the Whole: The full council or board meeting as a committee, to discuss a matter before voting on it at a regular meeting.
consent agenda: Routine items, chosen by the City Clerk with the mayor, that the Board approves together in one vote. Any member can have an item removed and taken up on its own. As used by: Board of Mayor and Aldermen.
first reading: The first time a council or board takes up an ordinance or other measure. It usually votes on it at a later meeting.
mill rate: The property tax rate, in dollars for each $1,000 of a property's assessed value. A mill is a tenth of a cent.
non-public session: A part of a meeting closed to the public. New Hampshire's Right-to-Know Law (RSA 91-A) allows it only for certain reasons, such as buying or selling property, personnel matters, or labor negotiations.
ought to pass: A committee's recommendation that the full board or council approve an item. "Ought not to pass" recommends voting it down.
quitclaim deed: A deed in which the city or town gives up whatever claim it has to a property, such as one it took for unpaid taxes.
receive and file: To accept a letter, report, or other document into the record, without taking any other action on it.
RSA: Revised Statutes Annotated, New Hampshire's state laws.
Select Board: The board of three to five elected residents that runs a town between town meetings: it sets policy, hires the town manager or administrator, and calls town meeting. Also called the Board of Selectmen or the Selectboard.
tabled: Set aside by a vote, to take up later. A tabled item comes back when the board votes to take it off the table.
TIF: Tax increment financing: a district where some of the new property tax from development is set aside, for public projects or for the development itself.
town meeting: A meeting of a town's voters that acts as its legislature: it votes on the budget, local laws, and the other articles of the warrant. In a representative town meeting, elected members vote.
variance: Permission from the zoning board to use or build on a property in a way the zoning doesn't allow, such as closer to a lot line, because of a hardship particular to the property.
warrant article: One item on the warrant, the list of what a town meeting will vote on. Each article is voted on separately.
ZBA: Zoning Board of Adjustment.