HAWLEY — A Special Town Meeting on Monday at 7 p.m. will seek residents’ input on two financial items and a non-binding resolution related to law enforcement.

Article 1 seeks to transfer $45,000 from the vocational stabilization fund to free cash to offset the fiscal year 2020 tax rate, according to Financial Administrator Virginia Gabert.

Without making the proposed transfer, this fiscal year’s tax rate would be $17.40 per $1,000 valuation; however, by making the transfer, the tax rate would be $16.22 per $1,000 valuation, Gabert said.

“With this (transfer), the average single-family tax bill might go up about $80,” she said. “Without the (transfer) … the average single-family tax bill would go up $350.”

Gabert said that one of the reasons for the increasing tax is “a decrease in state aid because we didn’t have any vocational students last year.”

Article 2 seeks to reduce this fiscal year’s vocation tuition budget by $15,000 to a total of $20,000.

This year, the town only has one vocational student, although it initially budgeted for two, Gabert said, which is why the article seeks to reduce the vocational budget.

Lastly, Article 3 is a non-binding resolution that looks at reciprocity of law enforcement services by joining the Western Massachusetts Law Enforcement Mutual Aid Agreement.

By joining the agreement, “Hawley will be able to request law enforcement mutual aid” from other towns in the agreement, and other towns may request aid from Hawley’s law enforcement, the agreement reads.

“Additionally, any police officer belonging to any of the departments (in the agreement) may, on his or her own initiative, ‘self-activate’ and engage in law enforcement activities, including arrest, within the borders of (any town in the agreement) as though he or she was operating within their own town,” the agreement reads.

“The selectmen have talked about (joining), but didn’t want to make a definite decision,” Gabert said. “They want to make sure that this is what the town wants before making a decision of that scope.”

Reach Maureen O’Reilly at moreilly@recorder.com or at 413-772-0261, ext. 280.