TOWN OF GRANBY
BOARD OF FINANCE
SPECIAL MEETING
MINUTES
MARCH 29, 2004
PRESENT: Michael Guarco, Chairman; Christopher D. Comer, Al Wilke, Richard O’Brien, Gordon Bischoff, and Francis Brady
Also present: Board of Selectmen: First Selectman John E. Adams, Sally S. King, Ronald F. Desrosiers, Frank D. Judice, and Mark Neumann, Roger Hernsdorf, Town Treasurer; William F. Smith, Jr., Town Manager.; Barbarajean Scibelli, Finance Officer; Board of Education: Matthew Wutka, Thomas Schrote, and Benjamin Perron, Gwen Van Dorp, Superintendent of Schools, and Harry Traver, Business Manager
Chairman Guarco confirmed a quorum and called the special meeting to order at 7:10 p.m. Chairman Guarco indicated the board received the town and school budgets and announced the meeting agenda for this evening.
The consensus of Board of Finance observers for the budget workshops was that the budget process was thoroughly thought out with careful research and feedback provided as necessary.
Board of Education member Matthew Wutka presented the budget. Some of the budget highlights were:
1. Adds teachers for enrollment
2. Partially restores support staff
3. Supports continuous improvement efforts
4. Funds mandated programs
5. Adds athletics through fees for services
6. Expands capacity through new revenues
7. Protects and enhances capital investments
Associated with the budget highlights are the strategies listed below and ways to achieve them.
1. Align resources to ensure equitable class size and academic support to students at all grade levels.
Fifty-five additional students are expected to be enrolled for FY 2004-05 (adds 3 FTE teachers and 3.6 FTE support staff); first grade teaching assistants and library and computer teaching assistants
2. Provide a comprehensive program of professional development, peer leadership, access to data, clear standards, and support for continuous improvement of student achievement.
a. Provide mentors for beginning teachers; incorporate use of student achievement data; support site-based school improvement plans and district curriculum initiatives; increase technical support, etc.
3. Maintain student access to a comprehensive educational experience.
Support new athletic clubs and sports; start-up of Salmon Brook Ecology Center; provide quality and diversity programs; and in-school suspension program at the high school.
4. Expand capacity through pursuing additional resources, efficiencies, cooperative endeavors, and supplements to local tax support for education.
a. Continue charging fees for summer school programs and high school athletics; promote savings through cooperative programs; graphing calculators are at the students’ expense; increase revenues by accepting additional Hartland students; and actively pursue additional grant funding.
5. Protect and enhance capital investments through a progressive maintenance program and capital plan.
a. Fund projects through Educational Capital Improvement Budget; increase revenues with Building Use funds; contract for maintenance agreements.
The driving forces for the budget were enrollment, operations (utilities, communications, and school health services), retirements (14 retirees, including severance, health benefits, and early retirement), state and federal mandates (special education $379,261, vocational tuition $31,500, and No Child Left Behind (no major dollars have yet to be realized for this program), maintenance and licensing agreements, and salaries and benefits.
In summary, the Board of Education's operating budget was $21,115,458.
Superintendent Gwen Van Dorp answered several questions regarding No Child Left Behind program, out-of-town tuition, pay to play sports, utilities (electric and fuel), and special education.
First Selectman Adams presented the Board of Selectmen's budget. He highlighted the revenue and expenditure budget showing comparisons from 2003-04 to 2004-05. The revenue budget showed a slight decrease of 1.4%. On the expenditure side, an increase of 3.2% was revealed. First Selectmen Adams also presented information on Other Funds. Other Funds included Dog Fund, Recreation Fund, Sewer Utility Fund, Capital Equipment/Improvement, and Education Quality & Diversity. Each fund showed an increase except for Sewer Utility Fund. He demonstrated an analysis of increasing items, listing the top ten items to be pension, Mid-CT tip fee, contract and maintenance miscellaneous, FICA and Medicare, drop site recycling, emergency medical dispatch program, insurances, Farmington Valley Health District,
and general maintenance (signs and salt). The range of increasing items from the high end is $53,095 for pension and from the low side is $4,360 for general maintenance. First Selectman Adams indicated the expenditure reductions were health plan with stop loss ($43,000) and capital ($900). He demonstrated the total expenditure increase was $356,472 and the difference between the reduction and increase was $312,572. First Selectman Adams mentioned from an analysis of the increasing items that 2/3 of the increasing items in the budget were payroll, pension, mid-CT tip fee, and grant fall off programs.
In summary, the Board of Selectmen's budget is outlined below.
Revenue Budget
Property Tax (excluding Current Levy) $560,000
Intergovernmental Revenues 5,229,237
Local Departmental and Fund Revenues 2,708,150
Total $8,497,387
Expenditure Budget
Administration $2,313,080
Personal & Property Protection 1,847,024
Libraries, Recreation & Social Services 606,054
Public Works & Environment 2,345,556
Capital Budget 655,000
Capital Non-Recurring Expenditure Fund Levy 884,816
Debt Service 2,882,303
Economic Development Funds 5,000
Total $11,538,833
Other Funds Budget and 2005-2014 Capital Improvement Program
Revenue Expenditure
Dog Fund $14,300 $14,300
Recreation 259,000 259,000
Sewer Utility 111,350 111,350
Education Quality
& Diversity 95,600 95,600
Capital Equipment/
Improvement Fund 690,773 690,773
2005-2014 Capital
Improvement Program (refer to detail in Budget Document)
Town Manager Smith answered several questions regarding the LoCIP fund, Town Aid Road (TAR) fund, pension, and revenues from the Building department, Town Clerk department, and drop-site recycling.
A FY '05 Budget Worksheet was distributed to the Board of Finance members that showed the Grand List at 2.40% and the Mill Rate at 4.48%.
Chairman Guarco thanked both boards for presenting their budgets and commented the budgets showed thorough, careful devised budgets. The budgets indicated service levels were sustained. The Board of Finance requested that the budgets presented be reduced by $40,000 to enhance the funding for property tax relief for elderly and totally disabled program. They also requested that the Board of Selectmen look at the ordinance regarding property tax relief and put in place the additional funding of $40,000 as soon as possible. The reduction would be $15,000 from the Board of Selectmen budget and $25,000 from the Board of Education budget.
ON A MOTION by Chairman Michael Guarco, seconded by Gordon Bischoff, the Board voted unanimously (6-0-0) to approve the Board of Education’s and Board of Selectmen’s budget as outlined above with a modification of a reduction to the budgets totaling $40,000 (BOE - $25,000 and BOS - $15,000).
ADJOURNMENT
On A MOTION by Gordon Bischoff, seconded by Richard O'Brien, the Board voted unanimously (6-0-0) to adjourn the meeting at 8:17 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Patricia I. Chieski
Recording Secretary
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