Finance Committee Minutes
Town of Bellingham – Municipal Center
Monday, March 15, 2010
1. FinCom Present: Carol Dill, Gary Maynard, Raymond Szczepan, Henri Masson, Toni Picariello.
2. FinCom Absent: Joseph Collamati, Roland Lavallee.
3. Meeting called to order: 7:15 p.m.
4. DISCUSSION AND REVIEW THE BUDGETS AS PRESENTED IN THE BUDGET BOOK.
Joseph Collamati requested that the Tree Warden & Fire Department be scheduled to review their budgets.
The Committee went through the budget book and requested that the following accounts be scheduled for a budget hearing:
1. #220 - Fire Department
2. #294 - Tree Warden
3. #192 - Employee Sick Buy Back
4. #302 - Blackstone Valley
5. #510 - Board of Health
6. #172 - Planning Board
There were questions with regard to the following accounts and Toni Picariello will contact the departments for an explanation.
a. #610 Library: Why is there a large increase in the Dues/Membership line item?
b. #630 Park & Recreation: Why did your "permanent" personnel salaries increase by $5,000, but the note indicates "level funded"? We did notice that you cut your misc. supplies by $5,000; we assume to off-set it.
c. #251 - Building Inspector - can you email me or the FinCom a copy of the Agreement between Bellingham & Blackstone on Building Inspector services. Does this include both the Inspector and the Assist. Inspector? How is the funding broken down?
d. #252 - Sealer of Weights/Measures - the FinCom questioned why the office supplies increased so much, but the comment states "Level funded". What is $6,490 needed for?3
e. #253 - Inspector of Plumbing & Gas - Why is this position still in the Union? Is it a part-time position?3
5. GENERAL DISCUSSION
A. Commission on Disability - request per their 11/18/2009 Minutes for Denis Fraine adding $3,000 for Keough Administration Building accessibility issues on the Town Meeting Warrant.
The Committee had a question regarding the request from the Commission on Disability for an automatic door at Keough School. Is the building grandfathered? Is this repair setting a precedent and will all the other buildings in Town need the same type of door? Toni Picariello will check with Denis Fraine.
B. The Planning Board sent a letter regarding their need not to appear before the FinCom for the Articles per the provisions of the Town Charter.
Adjourned: Raymond Szczepan/Henri Masson motion to adjourn. VOTE: 5/0. 8:30 p.m.
1 From Bernadette Rivard on March 22, 2010
"I have received your request for information about the Library Dues/Membership line item. The line budget item has not changed, it was $21,000 in FY10 and we are requesting the same amount for FY11.
The major portion of this line item is used to fund our membership assessment to our library network, C/WMARS. Each year the network assessment is calculated based on a formula to share the costs among member libraries. The library network provides the library with its patron and item database. We have over 8000 patrons and 80,000 items in the database. They also provide the library with Internet Access for 12 public and 10 staff PCs.
Below are the details on our C/WMARS line item for the past few years
Year Budgeted Assessment Paid to C/WMARS Net Lender Funding
FY10 21,000 21,454 14,654 $5,891
FY09 20,800 19,347 13,530 $5,817
FY08 20,000 20,152 15,232 $4,920
For FY11 we have requested $21,000 based on the prior year - actual assessment not yet finalized by C/WMARS.
The difference between the budgeted/assessment amounts and the amount actually paid to C/WMARS is a result of a variable credit that is applied to our account based on our being a “net lender” library. Net lender libraries are libraries that lend more materials to member libraries than they borrow. In the past few years, the Central Massachusetts Regional Library System (CMRLS) has provided funding to libraries that lend more than they borrow. The Massachusetts Regional Library Systems are reorganizing and starting in July of 2010 (FY11), CMRLS will no longer exist and this funding will no longer be available and we may responsible for the full estimated $21,454 assessment. We will not know until mid-May if we are a net lender for FY10, and will find out at that time the amount of funding we will receive.
There is no way for us to know that number before mid-May.
We respectfully request that this line item remain fully funded at $21,000."
(Accepted April 5, 2010)
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