Deerfield Select Board approves town meeting warrant, health insurance deal, and cannabis inquiry

DEERFIELD — April 29, 2026 — Deerfield Select Board approves annual town meeting warrant, health insurance deal, and six other actions at April 29 session. The three-member board voted unanimously on all items, including ratification of a memorandum of agreement with the Deerfield Public Employee Committee under MGL Chapter 32B governing health insurance benefit changes effective July 1, 2026 — a deal that limits the town's cost increase to roughly 12.5 percent rather than a projected 16 to 20 percent by adding deductibles to all plans. The board also approved the warrant for the May 11 annual town meeting at Frontier Regional School, which contains at least 20 articles including two override questions; a $10,000 gap between the Select Board and Finance Committee on the conservation agent line remains to be resolved before that date. A letter of support to Senate President Karen Spilka and Chairman Rod Riggs backs supplemental budget provisions estimated to deliver $204,733 to Deerfield's road budget, and a separate letter of inquiry to the Cannabis Control Commission asks for a status update on the long-pending Sunny Days Inc. retail license. Treehouse Brewing Company received consensus approval for Sunday, September 13, as the date for its fourth annual half marathon, targeting 2,000 runners and 1,000 spectators.