Budget Committee Meeting
March 30, 2015
Attendance: Jane Cirone, Chairperson, Walter Wasson, Vice Chairperson, Katherine Post, Ronald
Richardson, Carolyn Brown, Ellen Kasprzyk
Absent: Martha Hurd-Call,
Meeting opened at 6:00 pm
In response to some committee members’ request, Scott Gesualdi, Finance Director, began the meeting by giving a general overview of the Town finance and budget procedures. He passed out copies of the most recent auditor’s report.
The Town of Standish prepares its budget by estimating the Town’s expenses for the next fiscal year, calculating the expected revenues and filling out the remaining expense items by creating tax revenue.
The assessor will set the mil rate for tax revenue in September each year by calculating the tax commitment which is based on assessed real estate and personal property values as of the previous April 1st.
He explained the Town pays items (bills) on a bi-weekly basis, but reports them monthly at the Finance Committee meetings. Each month, they review revenues collected and expenses paid on a monthly and year-to-date basis. For instance, the State of Maine requires vehicle fees (registration fees, plates) to be remitted on a weekly basis, while fishing and wildlife fees are remitted monthly. Payments to MSAD#6 are made on a monthly basis, while Cumberland County is paid in one lump sum.
Budget Review of Departments:
The following departments were reviewed and accepted at the previous meeting:
Assessing: Motion made and seconded to Accept as Presented with no recommendations – 4 - 0.
Cable Television: Motion made and seconded to Accept as Presented with no recommendations – 4 – 0.
Town Council: Motion made and seconded to Accept as Presented with no recommendations – 4 – 0.
Town Clerk: Motion was made and seconded to Accept as Presented with no recommendation – 4 - 0.
Finance: Motion made and seconded to Accept as Presented with no recommendations – 4 - 0.
Building Maint: Motion made and seconded to Accept as Presented with no recommendations – 4 – 0.
The following departments were reviewed this meeting:
Code Enforcement:
Motion was made and seconded to reduce the costs of fuel and lubes to $500. – 5 – 1.
Motion made and seconded to Accept as Amended – 5 – 1.
General Admin:
Motion made and seconded to reduce training by $300. – 5 – 1.
Motion made and seconded to reduce the Department Head search by $750. – 4 – 2.
Motion made and seconded to reduce the outside printing costs by $150. – 4 –2.
Motion made and seconded to Accept as Amended – 5 – 1.
Planning:
Motion made and seconded to Accept as Amended – 6 – 0.
Appeals Board:
Per the Town Manager, there is no need for manual updates this year.
Motion made and seconded to remove $250 for manual updates – 6 – 0.
Motion made and seconded to Accept as Amended – 6 – 0.
Law Enforcement:
Motion made and seconded to Accept as Presented with no recommendations – 4 – 0.
Recommendations from this meeting:
Recommend the Town Manager and Department Heads encourage employee training. If the available trainings are not meeting employee’s needs, the funds should be eliminated from the budget until such time as appropriate trainings are found.
Recommend the Town of Standish perform a local search for oil propane prices. The cost per gallon in this budget is nearly $1.00 over current local prices for oil and propane.
A motion was made and seconded to adjourn at 8:10 pm. Next meeting will be Tuesday, March 31st at 6:00 pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Katherine Post
Secretary
| 
