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MINUTES
BOARD OF FINANCE
March 15, 2016
A REGULAR MEETING of the Board of Finance was held in the City Hall Auditorium on Tuesday, March 15, 2016.
Present were Mayor Elinor Carbone and Board of Finance members Chris Diorio, Mark Bushka, Frank Rubino, Joshua Ferreira, Christopher Anderson and Laurene Pesce.
Also in attendance were Leslie Zoll of BlumShapiro, Comptroller Alice Proulx and Deputy Comptroller Gina Casper.
Mayor Carbone called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m.
MINUTES
On a motion by Mr. Anderson, seconded by Mr. Ferreira, the Board voted unanimously to accept the minutes of the Regular Meeting held on February 16, 2016.
OPEN TO PUBLIC
On a motion by Mr. Diorio, seconded by Mr. Anderson, the Board voted unanimously to open the meeting to the public. There was no one present.
AUDIT PRESENTATION Leslie Zoll of BlumShapiro presented an overview of the June 30, 2015 audit, saying the City’s net position as of June 30, 2015 was $41,000,000, a decrease of $2,000,000 from the previous fiscal year.
She said the fund balance on the modified basis of accrual statements was not too bad at $8,800,000 as of June 30, 2015, or 6.8% of budgeted expenditures, although a higher fund balance would be better. Ms. Zoll said the total fund balance including all governmental funds was $17,000,000, an increase of $1,600,000 from last year.
She reported that the net position of the Water Pollution Control Authority was $9,900,000, as of June 30, 2015. This was a small increase of $124,000 from the previous year, she said, and the internal service fund showed a gain of $508,000 with a net position of $6,400,000.
Ms. Zoll noted that the pension trust funds had a net position of $8,900,000, which was a positive net increase of $878,000 from the previous fiscal year. She reported that the net pension liability for the City Employees’ Retirement Fund is $8,500,000, funded at 80.91% and the net pension liability for the Police and Firemen’s Pension Fund is $31,200,000, funded at 63%. Regarding the Teachers’ Retirement Plan that is fully funded by the State, Ms. Zoll said the State’s proportional share of funding is at $74,600,000 or 65%.
The revenue budgetary schedule came in very strong, Ms. Zoll said, with a positive variance of $720,000 on the revenue side and a positive variance of $1,300,000 on the expenditure side.
To comply with State government requirements, Ms. Zoll reported that Torrington spent $34,000,000 on State assistance in the 2014/2015 fiscal year. Only one finding was noted: Due to the Tax Collector turnover, a form for the State-owned property pilot program was late. Ms. Zoll said a material weakness in the City’s internal control was found at the Board of Education, that includes several adjustments, timing of journal entry postings and corrections that needed to be made to the balances and funds. This was mostly due to the turnover in the staff members that were responsible for these tasks, she said, and recommended that a Comprehensive Accounting Procedures Manual be put in place, and that the level of Board of Education staff be reviewed to make sure their activity for the year can be reported in a timely
fashion.
To comply with Federal government requirements, Ms. Zoll reported that Torrington spent $4,900,000 on Federal awards as of June 30, 2015, with the same findings as above. Mayor Carbone clarified that the late filing due July 1, 2015 was not the responsibility of the current Tax Collector, but of the prior Tax Collector.
Ms. Zoll noted that when material deficiencies are found, the State of Connecticut requires a corrective action plan filed with the Office of Policy and Management and in subsequent audits, the auditor is required to make sure that those findings have been corrected. She said the plan should be filed within 30 days from the audit report, which was at the end of February.
TABLED: BRD. OF EDUC. BUDGET REPORTS
On a motion by Mr. Anderson, seconded by Mr. Diorio, the Board voted unanimously to table acceptance of the Board of Education Budget Performance Report for Fiscal Year to date, February 29, 2016 because the Report had not been finalized or adopted by the Board of Education yet.
CONTINGENCY FUNDS – Brd. of Educ. I.T. Audit
On a motion by Mr. Ferreira, seconded by Mrs. Pesce, the Board voted unanimously to authorize the City Comptroller to expend $2,800 from contingency line item 0010.0047.5651.0000 for unanticipated costs relating to the Board of Education Information Technology Audit, approved by City Council on March 7, 2016.
BUSINESS: Mayor and Board Members
On a motion by Mr. Rubino, seconded by Mr. Bushka, the Board voted unanimously to consider business presented by the Mayor and members of the Board of Finance.
Mr. Diorio requested our Senators and Representatives be invited to a joint meeting with the City Council on April 19th. Mayor Carbone said she would ask them.
Mr. Rubino asked when the Tax Collector will report to the Board. Mayor Carbone said she would look into it.
Mr. Ferreira asked for the Grand List numbers, and Mayor Carbone said she would forward it again, and include the latest update.
Mayor Carbone announced Bicron Electronics’ relocation to Torrington, and Wittman Battenfeld’s expansion into the former Borgeson building. She said these small successes have a positive effect on local businesses and she will continue to reach out to businesses and work with them to coordinate some advantages through the Enterprise Corridor Zone program.
ADJOURNMENT
On a motion by Mr. Anderson, seconded by Mr. Diorio, the Board voted unanimously to adjourn at 5:24 p.m.
ATTEST: JOSEPH L. QUARTIERO, CMC
CITY CLERK
Carol L. Anderson, MCTC, CMC
Asst. City Clerk
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