Board of Selectmen |
December 9, 2009 |
Regular Meeting – Budget Summit |
Annah Ganley Hall, Senior Center |
Present: |
Robert P. MacKendrick, Chairman |
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Arthur J. Bourque III, Selectman |
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Al Merritt, Selectman |
Chairman MacKendrick called the meeting to order at 7:03 p.m.
Budget summit
Chairman MacKendrick welcomed those attending the budget summit and introduced Town Administrator William Gustus, who outlined the Town’s status for Fiscal Year 2010 and provided a forecast for Fiscal Year 2011.
Mr. Gustus announced that the state Department of Revenue had approved the tax rate for FY10, which will allow the next tax mailing to be completed on time. He thanked the Board of Assessors, its department and Town Accountant Julie McCarthy for their work.
Mr. Gustus said that after the action taken at October town meeting, the FY10 budget is balanced, but said it remains to be seen whether it remains in balance. The governor has asked the state legislature for permission to make budget cuts outside of the executive branch. An additional cut in local aid could result, most likely in January or February.
FY11 is lining up to be the most challenging year in a generation, he said. Local revenues are flat and are not expected to increase significantly. He is projecting a reduction of approximately $500,000 in state aid in FY11 based on the use of one-time revenues, including $2.4 billion in federal stimulus funds, in the FY10 state budget. For that reason, the Town’s projected FY11 budget showing a deficit of a similar amount.
The projected tax levy is up by $939,000. In FY10, the Town used $100,000 from the Capital Facilities Funds and $250,000 from the Stabilization Fund, much of which went to school technology purchases. Total revenue is projected at a $36,000 increase.
Preliminary budgets (departments have not submitted their budgets yet) are level-funded, with no increases in salaries and expenses. All contracts with employee bargaining units expire in June. Some unavoidable increases will be incurred, including $25,000 in general government, $187,000 in education and $385,000 in employee benefits and cherry sheet changes. All are related to insurance costs and benefits, with health insurance premiums expected to increase by 10.5 percent. In total, the budget is almost $400,000 out of balance without any additional departmental spending.
Mr. Gustus said he is open to any suggestions on how to eliminate the projected $386,000 deficit and balance the budget. He then called on various department heads and committees to discuss budgetary issues and projections.
Library: Library Director Nancy Ryan said that the library has suffered due to the elimination of the assistant director position, but said it would not be included in the budget proposal she will submit to the Board of Trustees next week. She said the lack of this position is felt in areas such as reviewing programs so that they meet the community’s needs, grant writing, collaboration with schools and reference desk coverage. The library is embarking on a long-range plan, necessary to qualify for state and federal grants, and the effort will begin with a community survey to be included with the tax bills. A building committee is being formed to determine whether the library building structure can support a second-floor addition. This year, the library failed to meet standards on spending set by the state
Board of Library Commissioners and had to file for a waiver. Library usage is on the rise despite funding limitations.
Fire Department: Interim Chief Francis Lennon said that the Fire Dept. is on target in its FY10 budget, with an increase in call firefighter salaries due to the reduction of one permanent position. Captain Michael Feinberg said the FY11 budget will reflect a significant structural change in the department with the anticipation of the hiring of a new chief. The salary of one firefighter assigned to the ambulance will be shifted from the regular budget to the emergency medical services enterprise fund. Other items will be level funded. The projected budget will increase by three percent. For capital items, Chief Lennon said a replacement of the 1998 Ford Explorer will be requested, along with the second year of a two-year hydraulic extrication tool purchase program, gear and hose replacement, a thermal imaging camera,
and a new ambulance.
Police Department: Interim Chief Joseph Dunn said that his department has no fat to cut, with himself, four sergeants and 12 patrolmen. He related recent charges in the department’s assignments, including the combining of the court officer and school resource officer functions. Chief Dunn is serving in both the chief and captain roles. He has done everything he can to curb overtime with compromising service; an additional patrolman would help this effort, as the day shift is running one officer short. The top capital priority is purchasing new cruisers. Other requests include a fingerprint machine and records management system.
Health Department: Health Director James Nugent said his budget would basically remain level funded. He has been pursuing grant programs and the H1N1 flu clinics have been paid for through the public health reserve fund. Lynnfield has received only 12 percent of the 15000 units of vaccine he requested in July. Insurance payments for flu clinics go into a revolving fund. The Title V septic loan program includes a fee paid to administration.
Board of Assessors: Chairman Ronald Patton said that this budget makes up 0.5 percent of the entire Town budget and has been level-funded for a number of years. The full-time staff has been restructured and the board voluntarily cut member salaries by 40 percent. In FY11, the department will be able to stay within its budget, although it will be a full revaluation year. Capital needs include a system to back up data on the server, which could also be in the information technology budget.
Recreation Commission: Director Stacee Monkiewicz said that in her first year she is coping with issues such as $8,000 in unpaid portable toilet rental bills from the previous two years. She said space is required for programming. Commission member Kevin Sullivan asked if $10,000 in the commission’s revolving fund could be carried over to the next fiscal year. Town Accountant Julie McCarthy said state law prohibits this, but that there may be another type of account that would allow this. Betty Adelson suggested the establishment of a gift account. Mr. Sullivan said that field work and replacement of bleachers is desired.
Conservation Commission: Conservation Administrator Betty Adelson said that work in wetlands areas continues here despite the economic downturn. Likely developments along Route 1 include a new Cadillac auto dealership where the Kia dealership stands, expansion of the Nissan dealership showroom and parking, as well as a likely development proposal signaled by a wetlands delineation request by a property owner. The draft Open Space and Recreation Plan has been completed and letters of support from Town boards and departments are sought. A subcommittee is working with the Board of Selectmen and tree warden on tree issues. Pesticide awareness workshops continue. A state grant will be sought to establish a Pillings Pond management program. The budget will be level-funded.
Council on Aging: Director Linda Naccara said that programming and attendance at the Senior Center continue to grow, while the staff and expense budget remains the same. Fundraising activities take place every day and grants, such as one that helps fund the outreach worker and replacement van driver, are sought. She remains the sole full-time staff member. A cook hired for the meals program found that it could not be accomplished in the budgeted 20 hours per week; about 30 hours are needed. For capital items, a new van will be needed in the future, and grant funds will be sought.
Department of Public Works: Director Dennis Roy said that his department is switching from outside work to inside work and preparing for snow and ice season. The DPW has 48 employees, and has made changes to its administrative structure and is looking for ways to save money. Staffing has been reduced by two positions in the last four years, and the department t cannot withstand further reductions. While energy costs have stabilized in the last year, a harsh winter will affect costs. Two major contracts are terminating in the upcoming months: the school bus contract with North Reading Transportation, and the contract for trash and recycling hauling with JRM. While he is hopeful that the price on the former contract will come down, Mr. Roy believes the cost of the latter contract could increase significantly. In
Fiscal Year 2012, the Town’s 15-year contract with Covanta for trash disposal terminates, and the new contract could also result in a significant increase, as the Town now pays $65 per ton, well below current rates. In the area of the capital budget, Mr. Roy said trucks and buses will be a priority in. He said that due to capital priorities in other departments, the Town has not replaced DPW trucks and that the fleet, which was upgraded when he took over the DPW, is now again becoming older. He said some school buses are now 11 or 12 years old. Building work, paving and other requests will be included in the proposed capital budget. Continuing to have little or no funding for the capital budget will have the Town going in the wrong direction, Mr. Roy said.
Historical Commission: Stephen Smith said that the Commission has had a $5,000 budget and that in the last two years the Commission has worked on the demolition delay bylaw, creating a central historic district and preserving historical documents. This year, the Commission is planning to interview several longtime residents to preserve their memories. It has a number of other projects it would like to undertake, and will seek grants to support them. Commission member Nan Hockenbury said the Commission is also seeking grants to support its ongoing cemetery preservation and conservation projects.
Information Technology: Joseph Bongiorno said that the best way to save funds in technology is through automation and consolidation. The fiber optic system has been installed in Town buildings and blade servers are being used at Town Hall. An automated data backup system is being implemented. MUNIS, police and assessors servers, which are five and six years old, need to be replaced. There has also been discussion of the need for servers for a Global Information System and for energy management systems, at a cost of about $8,000 each. He also said that an offsite duplication device to preserve data if there is a failure at Town Hall will cost about $25,000. He may also request $13,000 this your toward a virtualization project.
Veterans Services: Nicholas Secatore, who serves as co-director with Matthew Labonte, said that while the department has always been small and needs more money, it can survive with level-funding if necessary. Services have already been improved. He noted that the veteran services line item is based on the number of cases, and that if veterans meet the eligibility criteria, the Town is obligated to pay them. If the Town cannot, the Commonwealth takes the funds necessary plus a fee for administration form the Town through a cherry sheet charge.
School Department: Superintendent of Schools Robert Hassett said that the Lynnfield public schools have achieved national and state recognition for excellence in recent years despite spending well below the state per-pupil average. MCAS and SAT test results remain very high, and 90 percent of Lynnfield High School graduates go on to further education.
He said the schools have become the victim of their own success, as they have had to cope with rising enrollment. At the high school, where a recent renovation resulted in a student capacity of 590, enrollment is at 660. The Town is working with state officials on a modular addition project that is at the feasibility study stage. The Town expects to receive at least 40 percent reimbursement from the state if that project is approved. The School Department is vigorously pursuing grants, and has received $33,000 in funding for an Italian language program at the high school. School groups such at the Parent-Teacher Organizations, the Lynnfield Athletic Association and Lynnfield Educational Trust also provide support for school programs.
Special education costs are easing, especially out-of-district placement tuition and transportation costs. Of the 331 students in the system receiving special education services, 91 percent are served in the Lynnfield local schools.
Initial budget requests from school administrators would have resulted in a 6.5 percent spending increase if approved. Mr. Hassett said he denied several of these requests rather than putting them before the School Committee, as he is aware that the Town does not have the money to hire three or four new teachers. He is supporting new positions that will allow the schools to serve students while saving on outside costs. The lack of new teaching positions will result in higher class sizes at the high school and middle school. The result of a level funded budget, as apposed to the budget that he put forward to the School Committee, which would require a 3.5 percent increase in funding, would be a cut of $622,000, or the equivalent of about 12 teaching positions. He said he would fight to use money from the stabilization fund
to get the Town through these tough times.
Treasurer, Tax Collector and Operations Support: Christine O’Sullivan said that her budgets are on target for FY10. In FY11, she anticipates slight increases in expenses for payroll checks in the treasurer’s office and tax bills in the tax collector’s office. In the Operations Support budget, the mail machine contract will require additional funds. She said that while only $7500 has been spent on the senior citizen tax work-off program this year, $10,000 was budgeted for next year.
Town Accountant: Julie McCarthy said that her budget includes salaries and $3,000 in expenses. She said she can live within a level-funded budget. She is engaged in an audit and analysis of phone services and said a lot of changes will be made, with a projected savings of $25,000.
Budget Preparation
Ms. McCarthy asked those unfamiliar with the MUNIS accounting system to set up an appointment with her to be trained on the use of the system, and asked those who needed a refresher course on the use of the system to do the same. She said that the information on submission of Fiscal Year 2011 budget requests were included in a packet handed out at the meeting.
Comments from members of the Board of Selectmen and Finance Committee
Finance Committee Co-Chair Timothy LaRovere said that the Finance Committee’s budget would be level-funded. He said he looks forward to working with the Board of Selectmen, other Town boards, and Town departments on preparing the budget.
Selectman Merritt commented that he is always impressed with the efficiencies achieved by the departments and the services they provide. He said the Town is well served by its boards and employees.
Selectman Bourque said that a voter approached him at town meeting and said there is a lot of fat in the Town’s operation. He invited the resident to come with him to Town Hall and identify who the Town could get rid of. The resident said there must be other places the Town could cut. Selectman Bourque said he does not believe there is any pork left in the budget, after cutbacks have been made year after year. He said the Town is doing only what it must do now, and though he believes none of the people in attendance want to cut the budget, they will have to. He also said the Town is well served by its board members and employees. He said the Town will get through this difficult period, and that it hopes o get additional state funding and that Town officials are working hard to assist with the Meadow Walk project.
Chairman MacKendrick said that Lynnfield departments, boards and agencies have lower staffing and budgets than their counterparts in comparable communities in the region, and that Lynnfield provides better service despite this. He sees a bright future for the Town, but said in the short term the Town must be as creative as possible to continue to provide the current level of service to residents. He said the Town will survive this difficult period and eventually be stronger for doing so.
Selectman Merritt credited Mr. Gustus with “making it all happen” and said he never asks for credit for his work.
Mr. Gustus reviewed the budget schedule included in the packet and said he would contact departments directly to schedule their budget presentations to the Board of Selectmen.
Chairman MacKendrick invited comments and questions from the public. There were none.
On the motion of Selectman Merritt, seconded by Selectman Bourque, the meeting was adjourned at 8:09 p.m.
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