Chilmark Board of Selectman / Finance Committee Minutes January 31, 2007
Members present:
Board of Selectmen: Frank Fenner and Riggs Parker
Finance Committee: Marshall Carroll (Chair), Sarah Shipway, Doug Sederholm, William Randol, PersonNameRichard Williams, and PersonNameFrank Yeomans
Town Hall: PersonNameTim Carroll, Melanie Becker, PersonNameTom Wilson, PersonNameAnnette Anthony,
PersonNameSylvia Yeomans, Polly McDowell & PersonNameChuck Hodgkinson
Members absent: PersonNameWarren Doty
Public: Joyce Bowker - Up-Island Council on Aging (COA)
Leslie Clapp – All - Island Council on Aging (ICOA)
Jane Slater – Historical & Cemetery Commission, John Flender - Cemetery Commission
Mike Renehan - Board f Health (Chair), Don Hatch MV Refuse District
PersonNameJennie Greene – Personnel Board (Chair)
Marshall C. called the meeting to order at 7:33 pm. There was a brief discussion regarding corrections of the minutes from last weeks 1/24/07 meeting. Sarah S. moved to approve the minutes with corrections and Doug S. seconded. All were in favor.
UP-ISLAND COUNCIL ON AGING: (COA)
Marshall C. introduced Joyce Bowker, Director for Up-Island Council on Aging.
Marshall C. began the discussion by noting that the salary line had increased.
Joyce B. explained that the 4% increase was the COLA and step increases. She said that both she and the Outreach Worker were paid a salary based on 35 hours a week. She said she had been with the Council for 22 years, and as such received longevity, which was an additional 3% of her annual salary.
Melanie B. said that even though the COA served the 3 up-Island towns, because it was located in WT, she was a Town of West Tisbury employee, therefore fell under their by-laws and received the 4% COLA that was set by West Tisbury. Joyce B. said that was correct.
Joyce B. gave a run down of what the Council offered and whom it served. She said that currently
32.2 % of Chilmark’s resident were 60 and older. She said that not all the people who attended programs at the COA were seniors and said they offered programs that anybody could participate in such as the fuel assistance program, yoga classes, food stamps and out-reach programs. She said up to 500 people participated in their programs last year. She said that the COA had over 30 volunteers in their program, which would equate to approximately $ 10,000.00. Joyce B. said that part of their budget was supplemented by grants. She said when she first began writing grants for the COA they were only eligible for $ 300.00. She said currently they were eligible for up to $ 3,200.00 per year. She said that last year grant money was used to purchase a new phone system for the office. She said in addition to the grant
money, they had received about $ 20,000.00 from donations from the FRIENDS of the Up-Island COA.
Richard W. asked how the portion of Chilmark’s share was determined and Joyce B. said it was based on the yearly census of each town.
There was a general discussion. regarding transportation for the seniors that attend the COA.
Joyce B. said that the VTA offered what they called “ The Lift” which helped transport seniors to and from the COA. She said she didn’t necessarily agree with the rules the VTA used to determine eligibility for rides. She said there were volunteers in place to assist the seniors with transportation when the VTA could not. She said it was part of their mission to make sure every senior who needed/wanted to attend the programs (at COA) were able to get transportation to and from the center. She said that Lenny Jason was Chilmark’s representative to the VTA board and if there were any major problems then Lenny was contacted to help resolve the issue.
Riggs P. asked, of the 170 Chilmark residents who attended the COA, what the average age was and Joyce said 75 years old.
ISLAND COUNCIL ON AGING: (ICOA)
Leslie Clapp, Director, spoke regarding the budget for ICOA. She said that the ICOA was
501-C3 - a private, non-profit agency. She said that Chilmark’s assessment was 6.67% of the ICOA’s budget based on the entire Island of seniors (60 or older) and said Chilmark’s share was $ 11,491.00. She said this was based on population over 60. She said there were approximately 3,000.00 seniors 60 and over on the Island.
Leslie C. explained all the programs that ICOA offered, which included the Senior Day Program held at the Edgartown COA. She noted that there were approximately 26 elders between the ages of 80 – 90 years old who attended the day program had either a form of Alzheimer’s and/or dementia. She said the program ran 5 days a week from 9am – 3pm. She said the cost to the elder is about $ 35.00 per day. She said the VTA did provide transportation to the program.
She also explained that ICOA printed the 55-plus newspaper that was published monthly in the MV Times as well as distributed holiday Meals on Wheels, ran a taxi service for elders to attend off-island Drs. Appointments, and sponsored a Food Distribution Program in which ICOA distributed about 2,000.00 pounds of food monthly for eligible seniors. She said there were 10 Chilmark residents who participated in this program. She said that ICOA also assisted elders with fuel assistance program with money ICOA received money from FEMA.
There was a brief, general discussion on when and how ICOA was created. Leslie C. reminded the Committee that ICOA was an Island-wide organization.
BOARD OF HEALTH: (BOH)
Mike Renehan, Chairman, was available for any questions on the BOH budget. Riggs P. asked Mike R. about the $ 3,000.00 for Septic System Inspections line item (# 5145).
Mike R. said this was used in case the Board needed a Consultant. Riggs P. asked if the BOH had applicants pay for using a consultant. Mike R. said no, normally they did not charge the applicant any additional fees for using a consultant. Riggs P asked why and Mike R. explained that he felt that it was not the applicant’s fault if the Board needed to use a consultant to get information regarding their project. He said since none of the Board Members were experts he felt that at times a consultant was needed in order to get an official opinion. Mike said he felt that the application fee was a fair amount of money and that the taxpayer shouldn’t have to pay in addition to the application fee. There was a long conversation led by Riggs P. regarding the fact that the BOH was able to charge applicants the
consultant fee but did not. He said he sympathized but felt that he Board was faced with additional challenges and that the applicant should be responsible to pay for the consultant if their projected needed one. He said he didn’t think if was fair that $ 3,000.00 in line item # 5145 was being paid by the other taxpayers.
Mike R. said he didn’t understand why it would be a problem, if the Board didn’t spend the money then it would be returned back to free cash. Rigs P. suggested that maybe the line item could be reduced by 50% and Mike R. said he wanted $ 3,000.00 there in case it’s needed. He said it is not often that a consultant is needed, but wanted the money there when and if they did. Doug S. said he thought it was a good idea that the applicant paid for a consultant if needed. He said he felt that if it was a fairly large, complicated problem and the applicant was trying to maximize development, then they should be made to pay for the consultant’s fees. Richard W. asked if there was an operational policy on when the applicant would pay the consultant fee, such as amounts over some minimum.
Mike R. said there wasn’t. Frank F. suggested that the line item be reduced to $ 1,500.00 and if the BOH needed more money they could come back to Finance Committee to get a transfer of funds. Mike R. said he was adamant about not reducing the amount from $ 3,000.00.
Mike R. continued to explain the BOH budget and noted that the water testing was done in Aquinnah in their lab and that Sylvia was certified to take the necessary water samples.
There was a brief conversation regarding the Health Services. Mike explained that this was used for emergency health services only and noted that at times there was a need for home-bound residents to be seen by a health care worker and needed to attend to that person in their home. He said that this was above and beyond the Visiting Nurse.
Mike R. said that this year the BOH participated in an Island wide flue clinic. He said that next year he wanted to do a clinic for just Chilmark residents. He said even though things went amazingly well at the Island wide clinic, he felt that the town should hold their own clinic for their own residents, like they used to in the past.
Mike R. said that the line item # 5710 in-state travel was really used for mileage that Sylvia accumulated when traveling to meetings and out on inspections and perc tests.
Tim C. noted that there was $ 500.00 in line # 5399, Other Purchased Services and wondered if the BOH didn’t really need $ 500.00 then they could eliminate that line. He said if the Board did need it the money then they could go to the Finance Committee for a transfer. Mike R. said no, he wanted to keep the $ 500.00 in the budget and said that it was there in case of an emergency. He said that one year the beach and pond were closed and the Board used $ 450.00 of that budget to make the signs for the closings.
Marshall C. asked if there were any questions, there were none. He thanked Mike R. for coming.
WASTE COLLECTION:
Mike R. said that Don Hatch, from the MV Refuse District was present to answer any
questions regarding Waste Collection. Mike R. said that he was happy with the budget numbers and said they had changed the waste collection drop-off operation. He said in that operation they were charged for transportation fees and it was all lumped together in one figure. He said the Board had asked Don H. to break it down so that it would show what the labor cost were and what the transportation costs were. He said the budget listed a waste collection and drop-off operation. He noted the labor costs were $ 26,126.00. He said that figure included all of the labor, including summer help and insurance. He noted that listed under transportation there were disposal fees, which were 190 tons of household waste, and another 100 tons of recyclables.
He noted that they didn’t receive any money for recyclables and said they are charged $ 35.00 a ton for transporting them off-island. He said that they were able to decrease the budget by adding back the money the District received for the metal they transported. He said there was no transportation fee associated with the metal.
Riggs P. asked about engineering services line. He said that the amount of $12,500.00 budgeted had not been used in FY05, FY06 or FY07. Mike R. said that the money had not been used because the landfill was so new. He added there hadn’t been any problems associated with the landfill, therefore no engineer services were needed. He said eventually they would need some money in that line because there maybe a day when they may require engineer services. Mike R. noted that they should have used some of the engineer money to put in a retention pond at the back of the landfill. He noted that Keene excavation had handled any recent issues regarding that matter. Mike R. agreed that the amount could be reduced.
The landfill Maintenance line was increased by $5,000.00 and the Engineering Services line was reduced by $10,000.00 making a net reduction of $5,000.00. Mike R. noted that the Assessment was down considerably from last year
Frank F. said he thought Don H. was doing an excellent job running the District for the second year in a row. Tim C. asked if the District was accepting waste oil yet. Don H. said no, that they were in the permitting process so that they would be able to accept waste oil at the transfer station. Tim C. said the need for waste oil disposal was great. Mike R. said the budget was reduced by about $ 4,500.00. There was a brief conversation regarding the budget total for transportation. There was a general discussion regarding the possibility of one day allowing Chilmark residents to dump their garbage for free. Mike R. said it would be difficult for the landfill attendant to know who were Chilmark residents and who were not.
There was a quick conversation regarding $ 38,000.00 collected at the landfill and the 35,000.000.00 spent.
Riggs P. said that there was a pile of debris left outside the gate at the landfill and Mike R said he had talked to Don H. about this already and Don. H. said they would accept it, but they needed somebody to bring it to the transfer station. Mike R. said he would have done it by now, but he had been laid up with a bad back. Riggs P. asked Tim C. if he could find somebody, maybe the Highway Dept. to pick up the pile and transport it to the transfer station.
Tim C. said yes. Marshall C. asked if there were any more questions and there were none.
HISTORICIAL COMMISSION:
Jane Slater said last year they spent $ 13.00. She said this year they would need $ 500.00. She said they had asked Robert Thorsen to come this summer and give a talk on stonewalls. She said the money would cover his fee and accommodations.
There were no questions.
CEMETARY COMMISSION:
John Flender said that his budget was for upkeep of the cemetery. Riggs P. asked what the difference was between replacement and additional equipment. Tim C. answered replacement was when a piece of equipment was old and used and no longer working and that it needed to be replaced. And additional equipment was when the cemetery decided it needed to purchase a piece of equipment that they did not already have. There was very brief discussion regarding the removal of cedar trees from the cemetery. John F. said he would not cut down all of the trees originally planned. There were no questions.
PERSONNEL BOARD: COLA (Cost of Living Adjustment)
Jennie G. began the discussion regarding the COLA by stating that the Personnel Board was able to make changes regarding the % increase for the COLA due to recent information obtained by having the 4th quarter CPI (Consumer Price Index) numbers. She said that last year the PB had adopted a formula to calculate the COLA using a nine-month period (January – September) of the prior calendar year. However since the PB did not appear in front of the Finn. Comm. until Jan. 31, they were able to obtain the figures from the 4th quarter CPI. She said she felt that this was a much more accurate way of calculating the COLA. She said she would have Chuck H. explain in detail. Chuck H. reiterated what Jennie G. had said. He said he felt that if the deadline for the COLA factor was extended from
November 2 to Jan 31 the PB recommended using the 12-month CPI information with the ending date of 12/31. He said that he felt this data was much more accurate than the year ago data, which was currently what the PB used to determine the COLA. This began a long and detailed conversation regarding the COLA, the 9-month data versus the 12 month data, the CPI, what months were used in the 12-month data, how old the data really was, salary and step increases, what time frame Tim C. used to create the budget books, possible change in Finance Committee meeting dates, the process and time taken for the Tom W. to enter data for the budget worksheets used, which data base was used to calculate the COLA and what the Finance Committee had voted to do last year. Most of the Members of the Committee participated in this general conversation. Sarah S. noted that last year the Committee had voted to adopt the 9-month data to calculate the COLA. She said if they used the 12-month data this year to
calculate the COLA, then they would be going against what they voted to do last year. After much debate on which formula to use to calculate the COLA for the FY08 budget, Doug S. made a motion to abandon the 9-month formula and use the 12-month calendar ending December 2006 for this budget for an increase of 3.6 % and that in the future use the 12-month rolling term November – November with the figures available by December 15th. Bill R. seconded and all members were in favor. It was noted that the information provided came from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the Northeast Urban Wage Earners & Clerical Workers.
DOG OFFICER:
Tim C. said he had received an e-mail from Chris Murphy, Dog Officer regarding the budget. He said that Chris had wanted to increase the budget by $ 1,000.00. He said that he would like to pay an Assistant Dog Officer, (a Chilmark resident) to respond to calls if he is not available. He said that it seemed more sensible to pay an assistant who lived in town. He suggested that the assistant be paid $ 2,000.00. He said that this would reduce the need and therefore the duties for the West Tisbury Dog officer and assistant to cover for him when he was not available. He said if that change was made then the West Tisbury officers would receive
$ 500.00 each annually. Riggs P. suggested that he talk with Joan Jenkinson regarding decrease in her services. Tim C. agreed.
ANIMAL INSPECTOR:
Tim C. said that Ozzie Fischer was the inspector and that he received $ 300.00. Tim C. said that the town needed to think about the replacement of Ozzie, that he was at least 90 years old and that soon he would not be able to do the job. There was a brief discussion regarding the quarantine process for farm animals.
Tim C. said that he felt that the Committee should begin next week’s meeting at 7:00 pm to catch up on all the budgets they had missed. All Members were in favor. February 7th meeting to begin @ 7pm
Doug S. made a motion to adjourn and Sara S. seconded. All Members were in favor
Meeting was adjourned at 9:35 pm
Respectfully submitted
PersonNameAnnette Anthony, Assistant to Executive Secretary
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