NOTTINGHAM BUDGET COMMITTEE MINUTES
AUGUST 4, 2005
PUBLIC SESSION
APPROVED BY THE COMMITTEE SEPTEMBER 29, 2005
PRESENT: ABSENT:
Mr. John Decker Mr. Kurt Duprey (Excused)
Mr. Chet Batchelder
Ms. Denise Blaha
Mr. Michael Koester
Mr. Philip Fernald
Ms. Noreen White-Roy
Ms. Gail Powell
Mr. Peter Bock, Selectmen's Representative
Ms. Judy Doughty, School Board Representative
OTHERS PRESENT:
Mr. Hal Rafter, School Board Chair
Ms. Judy McGann, Superintendent
Ms. Bonnie Schofield
Mr. Bill Netishen
Mr. Charles Brown, Town Administrator
Ms. Kathleen Sargent, Business Administrator- SAU #44
Ms. Kelly Tivnan, Budget Committee Secretary
Mr. Koester called the meeting to order at 7:00pm.
Mr. Koester noted that Mr. Duprey had an excused absence.
ELECTIONS:
Ms. Roy made a motion to have an election of Budget Committee officers. Mr. Decker seconded the motion. The present members of the Budget Committee voted unanimously in favor of the motion. The motion passed 9-0.
Ms. Roy made a motion to nominate Chet Batchelder as Budget Committee Chair. Ms. Blaha seconded the motion.
Mr. Batchelder said that he would decline the position.
Mr. Decker made a motion to nominate Michael Koester as Budget Committee Chair. Mr. Fernald seconded the motion.
Mr. Koester said that he would prefer not to be Budget Committee Chair.
Ms. Blaha made a motion to nominate Kurt Duprey as Budget Committee Chair.
Ms. Roy noted that her concern with that was that Mr. Duprey had a very busy schedule.
Mr. Decker made a motion to close the nominations for Budget Committee Chair. Ms. Roy seconded the motion. The present members of the Budget Committee voted unanimously in favor of the motion. The motion passed 9-0.
Mr. Decker, Mr. Fernald, Mr. Batchelder, Ms. Blaha, Ms. Roy, Mr. Bock, Ms. Powell and Ms. Doughty voted in favor of the nomination of Michael Koester for Budget Committee Chair. Mr. Koester voted against the nomination. The nomination passed 8-1.
Mr. Koester made a motion to nominate Chet Batchelder as Vice-Chair. Ms. Roy seconded that motion.
Mr. Decker made a motion to nominate Noreen Roy as Vice-Chair. Mr. Batchelder seconded that motion.
Mr. Decker made a motion to close the nominations for Budget Committee Vice-Chair. Ms. Roy seconded that motion. The present members of the Budget Committee voted unanimously in favor of the motion. The motion passed 9-0.
Mr. Decker, Mr. Batchelder, Mr. Fernald, Ms. Blaha, Mr. Bock, Ms. Powell, Mr. Koester and Ms. Doughty voted in favor of the nomination of Noreen Roy as Vice-Chair. Ms. Roy abstained from the motion. The motion passed 8-0 with 1 abstention.
SCHOOL CONTRACT:
Ms. Doughty said that the negotiating team had tried to get the teacher salaries more equitable so they could attract more teachers at the beginning level. She said that they were looking for people at Steps 3, 4 and 5 to come in. She said that under the previous contract the entry level salary was $28,317. She said that under the new contract the entry level salary was $29,110. She said that the raises each year until Step 14 were 2.8%. She said that the amount for first year longevity was $700 versus the $800 that it had been in the past. Ms. Powell asked if the amounts would be renegotiated. Ms. Doughty said that the contract would be renegotiated in 2 years. Ms. Roy noted that a teacher on longevity would receive $700 the first year, $850 the second year, and $1,000 the third year.
Ms. Doughty said that longevity started at Step 14 because there were not any more steps at that point. Ms. Powell said that people receiving longevity also got the 2.8% increase each year. Ms. Sargent noted that people could start at Step 14. Mr. Bock asked if anyone did. Mr. Rafter said that some people started at Step 9 or 10. He said that it had been a tough negotiation. He said that not every town had longevity but Nottingham had for a long time. Mr. Decker asked if the School Board had a competitive analysis. Mr. Rafter said that they had some numbers. Mr. Koester asked how many staff members would qualify for longevity payments during the next 2 years. Ms. McGann said that there should be 13 teachers getting longevity for each of the next 2 years. Mr. Decker asked how many teachers were in each track. He also asked how many years teachers spent at each track. He also asked what step the
teachers were at who were making track changes. Ms. McGann said that she would email Mr. Decker a scattergram. Ms. Doughty said that everyone got an increase of 2.8%. She said that the increases for the steps went from 2.5% to 5%. She said that the lower increases were at the end of the scale. She said that the money for the step increases was already built into the default budget. She said that the amount they needed to raise in the first year was $14,715.17. She said that the total cost of the new contract in year 2 would be $98,781.38. She said that the cost of insurance was less than they had anticipated. Mr. Batchelder said that the numbers did not match. Ms. Sargent said that the numbers just reflected the salary increases without the adjustments. Mr. Koester noted that this was a more expensive contract than the one previously negotiated. Mr. Rafter agreed that the contract was more expensive but he said
that the distribution of increases was different. Ms. Roy asked if there was going to be a year where the school was going to lose a large number of teachers. Mr. Rafter said that he did not know. Mr. Koester asked if the School Board had used a professional negotiator. Ms. Doughty said no. She said that the suggestion had been considered but it had been voted down. Ms. Doughty said that during the first negotiations there had not been a professional negotiator but they had used a mediator. She said that during the second negotiations the parties had come to an agreement without a mediator. Mr. Koester asked if the School Board had recommended this contract. Ms. Doughty said yes. She said that it was a 4-1 vote. She said that there had been a slight change in the health insurance from the previous contract. Mr. Bock asked if the rates came out in advance. Ms. Doughty said that they got the rates 1 year in
advance. Mr. Rafter said that the co pay had been reduced slightly. He said that single needed to pay 5%. Ms. Doughty said that the new contract cost slightly less than the previously negotiated contract in health benefits and insurance. She said that it came out even with the prescription copay. She said that there had also been an increase in the extracurricular stipends. She said that they were going to convert the soccer and cheerleading coach to a cross country coach. She said that they had also added coaches for a girls and a boys B basketball team. She said that the stipends for the Athletic Director, the Band Director, the SHARP Program Director, and the Staff Development Director had been increased. Mr. Fernald asked where the cost of insurance stood in regards to the pay. Mr. Rafter said that employees got insurance over and above their pay. Mr. Batchelder said that the amount of $69,841.01 had been made
available in a statement at Town Meeting. He asked why that would change. Ms. Sargent said that the numbers for health insurance, FICA, etc. were clear now. Ms. Doughty also noted that there was a different salary schedule and that some staff had left and there had been new hires. Mr. Koester said that the Budget Committee would understand as much of the information as possible and then they would have a public hearing and vote whether to recommend the new contract or not. He said that following that would be the Deliberative Session and the town vote. Mr. Rafter said that the School Board had not presented an alternate operating budget. He said that they would live with the default budget. Ms. McGann said that included in the new contract was also a provision saying that the teachers would limit the number of workshops they attended out of the district to 3 and she said that only 2 teachers could go to each workshop. She said
that was an effort to lower the line for workshops and the line for substitute teachers. Mr. Bock asked if the workshops were in the state. Ms. McGann said that there was one national teacher workshop but the majority of workshops their teachers might attend were in New Hampshire, Maine, or Massachusetts. Ms. Powell asked if the buyout had changed. Ms. Doughty said no. Ms. Powell asked if the dental had changed. Ms. Doughty said no. Mr. Rafter said that there was another small contract change. He said that not all of the teachers were members of the National Teachers Association. He said that in the new contract people who were not members needed to pay 50% of the dues and the money would be put into a scholarship fund. Ms. Schofield said she would estimate that over 60% of the teachers were in the union. Mr. Rafter talked about the environment of the negotiations. He said that the environment had been
difficult but the result was good. He said that according to the New Hampshire School Boards Association 2005/2006 the state average for the minimum starting salary for someone with a Bachelors degree had increased 3.5%. He said that the state average minimum starting salary for someone with a Bachelors degree was $29,688. He noted that Nottingham was just below state average in that category. Ms. Blaha said that there were statistics on 111 school districts in the Boston Metro Area. She said that the Bureau of Labor Statistics had looked at the Consumer Price Index and said that the cost of living adjustment for 2004-2005 was 2.8%. Mr. Rafter discussed the agreement that the School Board had made regarding an accusation of Unfair Labor Practice. Ms. Powell asked what the School Board would say about the new contract and when. Mr. Rafter said that the School Board would talk before the Deliberative Session and would mostly say what
had been presented that night. He said that 40% of the staff was at or above Step 14. He said that the people at the top would get less under the new contract. Mr. Decker said that he would like to receive an email including a scattergram of the changes in staff. Ms. Sargent said that she would include the natural order of progression. Mr. Decker said that he was looking for anticipated track changes. Ms. Sargent said that she would not have that information until December 1, 2005. She said that she did not have projections for the 2006/2007 year. Mr. Decker asked if the Budget Committee could have a copy of the contract. Mr. Rafter said yes.
CIP QUESTION:
Mr. Decker asked if the year end numbers had been completed. Ms. Sargent said that they would be soon. Mr. Decker said that the Capital Improvement Committee would like to use them in doing the Capital Improvement Plan. Mr. Bock asked how the School Board handled student number projections. Ms. McGann said that they received a monthly readout of the number of students in each grade. She said that they kept track of that information. She said that they used those numbers to project the number of students coming in to Kindergarten and leaving 8th grade. Ms. Roy asked for a guess as to the total school enrollment. Ms. McGann said that she did not know because it was the summer but she said that it was still under 500.
TIMELINE:
Mr. Koester said that a timeline had to be established.
Mr. Decker made a motion that the election be held on October 11, 2005 and the public hearing be held on September 18 or September 19, 2005. Ms. Doughty seconded that motion.
Mr. Brown said that there was a 5 day waiting period from the Department of Revenue Administration. He said that the town tried to get bills out by November 1st so they could start getting money by the end of the year. Ms. Blaha asked if it would be possible to have the election on November 3, 2005. Mr. Brown said that if they waited that long the town would be taking a hit the next year. Mr. Batchelder said that it would be expensive to run an extra election and people would not vote. He said that the tax rate would be set anyway.
Mr. Decker made a motion to have the election on November 8, 2005 as a first choice and October 11, 2005 as a second choice.
Mr. Netishen said that November 8, 2005 would be ideal. He said that the date could be altered and it would be away from the holiday. Mr. Bock said that he thought both dates made sense.
Ms. Blaha seconded the motion. The present members of the Budget Committee voted unanimously in favor of the motion. The motion passed 9-0.
Mr. Batchelder made a motion that the public hearing be held on August 18, 2005. Ms. Blaha seconded the motion. The present members of the Budget Committee voted unanimously in favor of the motion. The motion passed 9-0.
Mr. Batchelder said that the public hearing would be held at the Town Office at 7:30pm on August 18, 2005 and the Budget Committee would have a short meeting at 7:00pm prior to the public hearing.
Mr. Koester said that they would only be on the fast track if there was no state or federal election scheduled for November.
OTHER COMMENTS:
Mr. Koester welcomed the new members of the Budget Committee. He also said that he had received an official letter of resignation from Ken Noel.
Ms. Roy made a motion to hold the next Budget Committee meeting on September 15, 2005 at 7:00pm. Ms. Blaha seconded the motion. The present members of the Budget Committee voted unanimously in favor of the motion. The motion passed 9-0.
Mr. Batchelder said that the Budget Committee needed to work on a working schedule.
Mr. Decker said that he had been working with the committee on the Capital Improvement Plan and they were getting close to a draft.
Mr. Bock said that he was looking forward to being a part of the Budget Committee.
Ms. Doughty said that the teacher contract negotiation had been awkward and they had fought hard to get a contract they agreed on.
Ms. Roy made a motion to adjourn at 9:45pm. Ms. Blaha seconded the motion. The present members of the Budget Committee voted unanimously in favor of the motion. The motion passed 9-0.
Respectfully submitted,
Kelly Tivnan
Budget Committee Secretary
Corrections submitted 9/30/05 by John Decker.
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