Board of Finance
Budget Workshop Minutes
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
East Windsor High School, room N-4
Meeting called to order at 7:30pm by Chairman DeSousa.
Members Present: Marie DeSousa, Jason Bowsza, Joanne Kubic, Albert Floyd, John Manette, Robert Little, Adam Mehan, Kathy Pippin
Board of Selectmen Present: Denise Menard (First Selectman), Gilbert Hayes, Dale Nelson
Others: Tim Howes, Superintendent of schools, Catherine Cabral, Town Treasurer
Mr. Howes addressed several issues with which board members had had questions. The first was regarding degree changes. Mr. Manette asked why the increase in degrees reflected in the Board of Education budget hadn’t happened before. Mr. Howes explained that it is based on educators receiving further education certifications, effectively changing lanes, and step increases.
Mr. Howes was also asked to address the budget by department and explained that the disparity is the result of a formula change.
Ms. DeSousa questioned the difference in workforce spreadsheet, to which Mr. Howes responded that the difference represents all reductions, not just position changes.
Mr. Manette asked why no money had been removed of the benefits line. Mr. Howes stated that money had been removed, and the reason that more had not been reflected was because the cost of benefits to members still in the budget had increased.
Ms. DeSousa asked if there had been any new developments with concessions from the teacher’s union. Mr. Howes stated that there had been no new developments on that front. Mr. Howes went on to further explain union give back options.
Mr. Floyd asked how teachers’ salaries in town compare to other school districts, to which Mr. Howes responded that we rank 108 out of 169 towns in teacher pay, and that in Hartford county we rank 27 out of 27 towns.
Mr. Little asked if the Board of Education payroll was done in house, or through an outside vendor. He suggested that it may be cheaper to use an outside person. Mr. Howes stated that it was done in house, and resulted in a cost savings to the town.
Discussion shifted to finding large pockets of money within the general budget to reduce for the final budget presentation. It was pointed out that the school budget represents about 60% of the budget, and that townside government comprises about 40% of the budget. The idea of reducing the school budget by another $400,000 and townside government by an additional $130,000 was discussed, but no decisions had been made.
Mrs. Menard presented several alternative spending reduction measures, potentially reducing agency funding by 5% and 10%.
Mrs. DeSousa wants to continue discussion regarding breakdown of other budgets outside of the Board of Education.
It was determined that the Police Department did indeed have a salary overage of about $67,000, and discussion moved to the dog pound and the dog fund. It will likely be a cost savings to the town to keep the pound in town as opposed to engaging in a shared service with another town.
Mrs. DeSousa noted that the overage amount in the Police Department roughly equals the salary of one police officer, and that elimination of that officer could potentially jeopardize the town’s eligibility for future federal grants, including new stimulus money.
Mrs. Menard also pointed out that the town was currently engaged in more than one C.O.P.S grant, and that the terms of all grants must be met to retain eligibility for future funding.
Mrs. Menard also reminded us that there are other options that the board had previously discussed in executive session that are on the table to reduce costs.
Discussion shifted to the capital improvement plan, and the removal of several items was discussed, but no decision was reached.
Mr. Floyd suggested that the discussion return to the budget time frame as opposed to looking for individual pockets of savings. At this point, the discussion shifted towards potential mill rate ramifications.
It was determined that the Board of Finance would go line by line through the suggestions made by the Board of Selectman to determine if further savings could be reached, and if there were reductions that could be reached by unanimous consent of board members.
It was clearly stated that figures compiled during the workshop were fluid and not unanimously agreed upon, and therefore are not official.
It was determined that there was not a need to enter into executive session at tonight’s meeting.
A motion was made by Mr. Floyd, seconded by Mr. Little, and was unanimously voted to adjourn. Meeting adjourned at 9:32 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted,
Jason Bowsza
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