TOWN OF GRANBY
BOARD OF SELECTMEN
BUDGET WORKSHOP MINUTES
MARCH 9, 2009
First Selectman Adams called the meeting to order at 6:08 p.m.
PRESENT: John Adams, Ronald Desrosiers, Sally King, Mark Neumann, and William F. Smith, Jr., Town Manager
Also present: Barbarajean Scibelli, Administration Finance Officer; Frederick Moffa, Board of Finance member
Selectman King began the review of Personal and Property Protection, which includes Building Inspection, Fire Prevention, Emergency Management, Health Services, Police Department Administration, Communications and Dispatching, and Police Operations and Services.
There is a decrease of $5,000 for Temp/Part-Time in Building Inspection payroll because of a change in staffing. Revenues are from Building Inspection fees and contract fees from Hartland, which are $2,400 per quarter. The $9,600 fee from Hartland will increase by $500 next year.
Fire Prevention budget had a slight increase in Temp/Part-Time payroll and the other change in this category is for the Lost Acres Fire Department (LAFD) contracted increase per our agreement with them.
Police Department Administration is now using the State Accreditation Association instead of the National Association, which is a savings of $1,000. This accreditation process is done every three years. Communications and Dispatching had a slight increase in Temp/Part-Time and Overtime, which reflects activity in those categories. Selectman King explained that the Ammunition and Supplies figure in Police Operations and Services is for ongoing training that is required. Also in that category was a decrease in the contribution to the Dog Fund of $2,000.
There were no changes made to Personal and Property Protection.
Selectman King began the review of Libraries, Recreation, and Social Services, which includes Library Services, Social Services, Recreation Administration, Senior Citizen Activities, and Community Support.
There were no significant changes in Library Services. Social Services had no real change, just a switch in the way payroll was categorized. Some full time payroll was previously covered under Temp/Part-Time with money from grants and the General Fund. That is now reflected in the regular payroll and the Temp/Part-Time payroll has decreased. There was a slight decrease in miscellaneous supplies in Recreation Administration. Senior Citizens Activities had a grant fall off (payroll) in the amount of $7,200, which is reflected in the increase in regular payroll and a decrease in Temp/Part-Time.
No changes were made to Libraries, Recreation, and Social Services at this time.
Selectman Adams began the review of Revenues. This includes Property Taxes, Intergovernmental Revenues, and Local Revenues and Fund Transfers.
Prior Years’ Taxes is up 8.1% and Interest and Liens is up by 15.0%, which reflects activities in these areas. Auto Supplement is down 5.3% showing people are not buying new cars. Intergovernmental Revenues are up slightly and hopefully will hold based on the Governor’s proposed budget and other estimates. Local Revenues and Fund Transfers are down somewhat due to the poor economy. Planning and Zoning, Building Permits and Licenses, Inland Wetlands Commission, and Driveway Permits are all down. The Bulky Waste Disposal/Recycling program is on target with operational costs.
Other Funds include the Dog Fund, Recreation Program Events, Sewer Utility, Capital Equipment/Improvement Fund, and Education Quality and Diversity. The Dog Fund, Capital Equipment/Improvement Fund, and Recreation Program Events have all gone down from 2008-09. The Sewer Utility has stayed the same and the Education Quality and Diversity Fund has increased per Board of Education request.
No changes were made to Other Funds at this time.
Selectman King suggested they talk about the new Single Stream recycling program proposed to begin July 2009. She stated there seems to be a lot of resistance to the reduced size of the waste container. Town Manager Smith stated his office has received many calls also, and suggested they might have a six-month “break in” period where extra bags would be available for people to use for waste if they needed them. It was agreed that educating residents about the system, and making them aware of the real savings that would occur if recycling was done to its full potential, would make this a more successful program.
The Board of Finance set a budget operations guideline increase for both the Board of Selectmen and the Board of Education at 2% above this year.
The Town Manager’s proposed budget was submitted at 1.88%, which was below the suggested guideline. This was not an easy year, but with the cooperation of town staff, it was made possible.
The budget process which began in the fall with the Plus 1 budget presentations, three board meeting in January, and Board of Finance public input session and guideline setting in February are just some of pre-planning for the budget. In addition, the Selectmen review individual sections of the budget and because of the professional work done by staff on the budget, workshop reviews were accomplished in two meetings. The March 12th and 16th meetings will be cancelled.
The next step in the budget process is for the Board of Finance to hear presentations from the Board of Selectmen and the Board of Education for their budgets on March 30, 2009 at 7:00 p.m.
The meeting adjourned at 7:23 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
William F. Smith, Jr.
Town Manager
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