Board of Health weighs fee hikes for 2027

Board of Health · Meeting of October 21, 2026

SHUTESBURY — The Shutesbury Board of Health compared its septic, well and hauler permit fees against Leverett and Montague, moving toward increases planned for 2027 and 2028. Catherine Hilton, who led the Zoom-and-in-person meeting, said Montague charges $275 for new septic permits and $175 for hauler permits, while Leverett charges $300 for smaller septic systems and $75 for well permits. Shutesbury currently charges $200 for perc test witnessing, $50 for well permits, and plans to raise hauler and installer license fees to $100 in 2027 and possibly $150 in 2028.

Member Garrett Simonson said he recalled a state Department of Public Health call addressing local fee schedules but was unable to locate the announcement, while Catherine Hilton pledged to follow up with the state association and Meg Tudrin. The board voted 4-0 to approve prior minutes and tabled a septic permit review for a Hills Road project pending an outside reviewer's report.

In the full story:

• The Full Story
• Why It Matters
• Key Motions & Votes
• Source
• Shutesbury's community access TV: Board of Health meeting, October 21, 2026
• The complete report: 789 words

Source: the Board of Health meeting of October 21, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript. It was corrected where it differed.