Town of Farmington
Budget Committee Meeting
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
Committee Members Present:
Neil Johnson, Chairman
Ann Titus, Vice Chairman
Brian St. Onge, Selectmen’s Rep.
Sylvia Arcouette
Resta Detwiler
Sam Cataldo
Committee Members Absent:
Jodi Connolly, excused
Stan Freeda, School Board Rep., excused
Stephen Henry
Others Present:
Goodwin Library Trustees Carol O’Connell, Linda McElhinney
1). Call to Order:
Chairman Johnson called the meeting to order at 7:03 p.m.
2). Pledge of Allegiance:
All present stood for the Pledge of Allegiance.
3). Review of Minutes- May 27, 2015:
Motion: (Titus, second Detwiler) to approve the minutes as written passed 6-0.
4). Public Comment:
Goodwin Library Trustee Carol O’Connell told the committee the Trustees would like to share information about some of the activities and fund raising events at the library. She said the Friends of the Library have scheduled a yard sale for this Saturday and volunteers have helped kick off the summer programs. She added that the library has many volunteers who are helping them find creative ways to maintain programs in light of the budget cut.
Trustee Linda McElhinney said she came to meeting to foster open communication with the Budget Committee. She asked the committee to consider adding a review of the library budget to the agenda and allow members to ask questions of a library representative. She also asked if the committee would be interested in having the library present their budget to the committee.
Chairman Johnson explained that the department budgets are presented to the Board of Selectmen. Department heads attend those meetings in case Selectmen have questions or need more information.
Selectman St. Onge said it would be helpful if the library budget were broken down into a more itemized list like other town department budgets. Ms. McElhinney said an itemized breakdown is available and will be provided to the committee.
Vice Chairman Titus advised the Trustees to ask to speak to committee even if they miss the Public Comment portion of the meeting. She added that the most important meeting for Trustees or representatives of the library to attend is the Public Hearing held in January.
5). Discuss Answers to Questions Previously Posed to the School Board Representative:
Chairman Johnson read a response from Business Administrator Laurie Verville dated June 1, 2015 regarding questions asked at the previous meeting.
A). Telephones- Ms. Verville noted that the district has gone over budget in several of the telephone line items. One year ago the billing for telephone and internet services were combined in an effort to save money. There is $8,500 in Technology funds to help with the cost of internet services. She added that the district is reviewing the current contract and comparing competitors costs and services.
B).Electricity-The line item for electricity at the annex was overspent by $3,143. The amount was improperly posted and will be posted to the Valley View School.
6). Review School District and SAU Budget and Revenue Reports (7/1/14-6/30/15):
A). All Funds – Revenue Report
Page 2, line 31- Project Pride. This line was overspent by $5,479.43. Sam Cataldo asked what this line represents and why it is overspent.
B). YTD Expenditure Report- Grants and Special Revenue Funds
There were no questions from the members.
C). YTD Expenditure Report- General Fund
Page 2, line 54- Supplies GED Program. The line was overspent by $400. Selectman St. Onge asked why the amount spent is double what was budgeted.
Page 4, lines 113 and 114- Salaries, Spec. Ed. Tutors- Henry Wilson School and FHS. Both lines were budgeted at $1. Line 113 was overspent by $212,250. Line 114 was overspent by $358,400. Sylvia Arcouette asked why administrators did not budget for these lines.
Page 21, line 548-Telephone- FHS. This line is overspent by $236.56. Sam Cataldo noted that there was supposed to be a decrease in the phone expenses after the district switched to VOIP (Voice Over Internet Provider) but no savings were realized. This item was addressed in the Business Administrator’s memo.
Page 22, line 574-Salaries Sub – Custodial DIS. The line was overspent by $254.49. Sylvia Arcouette asked why the line was overspent. Chairman Johnson said he thought this was due to a long term injury resulting in a Workman’s Comp claim.
Chairman Johnson noted that the report shows more than $1.3 million in unspent funds but cautioned this may not be a final figure or represent the amount of funds to be returned to the town.
Chairman Johnson asked about the status of the new high school sports field. Selectman St. Onge said Selectmen approved allowing the water department to provide the trench work and connections to the main water line for the sprinkler system at no charge to the district.
7). Discuss Answers to Questions Previously Posed to Board of Selectmen Representative:
Selectmen St. Onge provided the following answers to questions posed by members at the previous meeting:
Administrative Secretarial increase- Represents the cost to provide additional secretarial coverage when the Selectmen’s Secretary was out of work due to an injury.
Elevator Telephone-The Finance Administrator mistakenly posted an Eversource bill to this line. The actual cost for the phone is $35.57 a month.
Single stream recycling-The town is credited at the value of paper pulp for items collected for recycling. The town does not make money on the recycling of items, but saves money by keeping those items out of the regular trash and reducing the hauling fee he said.
8). Review Town Budget and Revenue Reports:
A). Remittance Report (1/1/15-5/31/15)
Page 7, Scrap Metal ($996.80). Selectman St. Onge said this line represents the funds paid by Berwick Metal to the town for recycling of scrap metal.
Page 11, Demo Debris ($7,455.45).This line represents funds collected for disposal of demolition debris that are weighed at the landfill scale. Residents are charged eight cents a pound for disposal of these items.
Page 11, Landfill Charges ($5,856.10). This figure represents fees collected for the disposal of bulky items such as TV’s, tires, appliances, etc.
Page 11, Pay per Bag ($26,311.35). This amount shows the amount collected for stickers purchased by residents for disposal of household trash.
Sam Cataldo asked if residents of other towns are permitted to use the Farmington Landfill. St. Onge said landfill usage is limited to Farmington residents and a vehicle resident sticker is required.
B). Budgeted Expenses and Encumbrance Report (June 2015)
There were no questions about this report.
9). Old Business:
Members received copies of a memo from Recreation Department Director Rick Conway regarding Selectmen’s questions about cameras to be installed at Fernald Park. The memo outlined the number of cameras to be purchased, proposed locations of the cameras and costs for the cameras and related equipment.
10). New Business:
A). Alternate Representative- Vice Chairman Titus asked the members for a volunteer to become the alternate representative from the Budget Committee to the Capital Improvement Plan Committee. She explained that the current Bud Com rep. Sam Cataldo is sometimes unable to make the CIP meetings due to his duties in the state Senate. Sylvia Arcouette agreed to fill the position.
B). Summer Meeting Schedule- Members discussed whether to meet during the months of July and August. Discussion included a light schedule during the summer, lack of availability due to vacation, new school district budget begins in July and whether the committee is shirking their duties by not meeting. Motion: (Arcouette, second Titus) to take the months of July and August off passed 4-2.
Vice Chairman Titus requested copies of the School District YTD budget be made available for members’ review and discussion at the September meeting. She added that the committee could always schedule a meeting if needed.
11). Any Other Business: None.
12). Next Meeting: Wednesday, September 23, 2015 at 7 p.m.
13). Adjournment:
Motion: (Titus, second Arcouette) to adjourn the meeting passed 6-0 at 7:45 p.m.
Respectively submitted
Kathleen Magoon
Recording Secretary
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