MINUTES
BOARD OF FINANCE
October 16, 2012
A REGULAR MEETING of the Board of Finance was held in the City Hall Auditorium on Tuesday,
October 16, 2012.
Present were Mayor Ryan Bingham, Corporation Counsel Raymond Rigat, Board of Finance members Bill Lamoin, Laurene Pesce, Mark Bushka, Frank Rubino, and Brian Paganini. Police Chief Michael Maniago and Comptroller Alice Proulx were also present. Board of Finance member Thomas Scoville was absent.
Mayor Bingham called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m.
MINUTES
On a motion by Mr. Paganini, seconded by Mr. Lamoin, the Board voted unanimously to accept the minutes of the Regular Meeting held on September 18, 2012. Mr. Bushka and Mr. Rubino abstained.
BUDGET TRANSFERS: To Capital
On a motion by Mr. Bushka, seconded by Mr. Lamoin, the Board voted unanimously to authorize the budget transfers totaling $433,369.67 into the Capital Fund, as listed in the Comptroller's memo dated October 9, 2012, having been approved by City Council on October 15, 2012.
Ms. Proulx explained that some of these line items are for Street Department projects that they would not be able to complete by the end of the fiscal year, and these transfers do not relate to the current budget.
Mayor Bingham relayed Mrs. Pesce's emailed question to the Board, asking Chief Maniago about the $105,894.62 that was transferred in into the Dispatch project, while overtime was exhausted.
Chief Maniago said he never stated the overtime was exhausted, and that he hadn't seen this email.
Ms. Proulx explained the question, saying since there is always a need for a certain level of overtime, how was it that there was so much left over.
Chief Maniago explained that when he was asked to find $155,000 in his budget, overtime was one of the obvious places because it is one of the larger line items. He said some activities that operate on overtime were curtailed such as Community Enhancement, extra Traffic Enforcement, and Community Presentations. Detective Bureau and Accident Investigations Team callouts were mercifully reduced, he said, and noted that one serious crime could result in $15,000 to $20,000 in overtime over the course of a couple weeks. Chief Maniago said that certain requests for police officers were handled on private duty instead of on overtime, and comp time was judiciously utilized instead of overtime. He recommended that comp time not be used because it becomes an unfunded mandate line item.
Chief Maniago said the $155,000 for Dispatch, along with $40,000 for the radio system, equated to almost $190,000 that was not budgeted for and had to be found mid-budget. His staff was given the assignment to cut back on their overtime and find ways to do more with less. He noted that it might be asked why the Police Department doesn't do this every year, and said that by comparison, they have about $45,000 more in overtime expense this year, than the same time last year. There have been more callouts, more serious crimes, and accidents this fiscal year, he said, and these occur on overtime because the shift can't be depleted for investigations.
Mrs. Pesce arrived at 5:06 and reiterated her question. Chief Maniago repeated his explanation and added that the majority of their personnel shortages didn't start until this current fiscal year.
Mr. Lamoin said it would be nice to know what projects are pending and will need to be carried over, especially those that were budgeted in that current year and haven't even been started.
This will help us prioritize, he said. Mayor Bingham said the Five-Year Public Works Capital Plan will provide that information, and it is updated every year.
BUDGET TRANSFERS: Year End
On a motion by Mr. Lamoin, seconded by Mr. Paganini, the Board voted unanimously to authorize the year-end budget transfers totaling $571,907.48, as listed in the Comptroller's memo dated October 9, 2012, having been approved by City Council on October 15, 2012.
Mr. Lamoin asked what the Holiday transfers were, and Ms. Proulx said she'd find out.
Mrs. Pesce noted that more money was being removed from Contingency and asked what the final numbers were on the storms' cost. Ms. Proulx said the total cost of the October 2011 snow storm was $443,000, with a $332,000 reimbursement from FEMA, and a $40,000 net cost to Contingency.
BUDGET MODIFICATIONS
On a motion by Mr. Lamoin, seconded by Mr. Paganini, the Board voted unanimously to authorize budget modifications, as listed in the Comptroller's memo dated October 11, 2012, having been approved by City Council on October 15, 2012.
In answer to Mr. Rubino's question, Ms. Proulx explained she could either reduce the expenditures by the revenue or show the revenue and show the gross expenditures. She said she feels it is a better audit trail to show the gross revenue and the gross expenditures. She said she didn't modify this for the entire FEMA reimbursement because she would be modifying a lot of individual line items. But she did modify the capital projects line so that she could make the transfer into the capital projects fund for the projects that were impacted by the money that had to be removed in order to cover the storm's cost.
BUSINESS BY MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF BOARD OF FINANCE
On a motion by Mr. Rubino, seconded by Mr. Paganini, the Board voted unanimously to consider business by the Mayor and members of the Board of Finance.
Mr. Lamoin asked if the Actuarial Report he received is for informational purposes only. Mayor Bingham said it is. Mr. Lamoin asked what could be done to improve our financial position before the next budget cycle. Mayor Bingham replied that Department Heads always look for savings, that 90% of our budget is comprised of fixed costs, and he is always ready to hear suggestions from the Board. He said the City has to meet statutory requirements and needs to increase the Grand List. Mayor Bingham said the recently received sales tax reimbursement will be used for an RFP for a comprehensive marketing plan that will place the City in front of developers and companies looking to move or expand. He said it doesn't look like our Legislature is going to remove some of the burdens of unfunded
mandates, and it doesn't seem as though our depressed market will change for another four or five years.
Mrs. Pesce welcomed Mr. Rubino to the Board.
Mr. Bushka asked if there were any more transfers for FY11/12. Ms. Proulx said no, and that there might be about $50,000 left in contingency. She said they are getting close to the end of the audit process and will know what the fiscal year looks like at that time.
Mr. Paganini asked about the Main Street project. Mayor Bingham said pedestrian safety, increased traffic flow, and aesthetics remain as the goals for downtown. This was outlined in the MDP, and adds up to $16 million to $20 million, he said. Mayor Bingham said we were awarded $750,000 for the west side of Main St., $500,000 for the east side of Main St., $800,000 for parts of East Main St., Center Bridge and South Central lot. In an effort to coordinate these grants, they are considering a five-way intersection project. He said the Department of Transportation will run an informational meeting on November 1st. Mayor Bingham said the City's matching funds for these grants will come from some LOCIP money, sales tax revenue, and Capital budgets. He said he is
optimistic about actually achieving these goals, and if there are no significant budget hurdles in the future, we can do something significant for downtown. Mayor Bingham said an investment in downtown is an investment in Torrington as a whole because it sets us apart from our competitors in Connecticut.
Mayor Bingham introduced the new Corporation Counsel, Raymond Rigat.
ADJOURNMENT
On a motion by Mrs. Pesce, seconded by Mr. Bushka, the Board voted unanimously to adjourn at 5:40 p.m.
ATTEST: JOSEPH L. QUARTIERO, CMC
CITY CLERK
Respectfully Submitted,
Carol L. Anderson, CCTC
Asst. City Clerk
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