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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFinance Comm. 04/18/2024Town of Mansfield 6 Park Bow, Mawsfield,, Massac$nselfr 02048 i r I - ( ! 1 (} " r. Finance Committee) Q f �„ i ti �{• U� 8.tbx� Present: Ms. Sara Walsh, Chair, Mr. Scott Feely, Vice Chair; Ms, Greta I nurston', ClerK;_IV'rTdacK Cooney and Ms. Melinda Tarsi were present in meeting room 3 A/B at Town Hall'. Mr. Mike larty was present via GoToWebinar. Also Present: Mr. Matthew Violette, Assistant Town Manager and Mr. Kevin Dumas, Town Manager Not Present: Mr. Walter Wilk Opening Meeting; 1. Open Meeting Ms. Sara Walsh called the Finance Committee meeting to order at 7:0413M. 2. Approval of Meeting Minutes Motion: To approve the meeting minutes of February 28, 2024, March 21, 2024 and March 27, 2024, (Feely/Tarsi) Passes 6:0 Roll Call Vote: Tarsi —Yes Feely -Yes Walsh —Yes Thurston —Yes Cooney —Yes Flaherty —Yes Financial Updates and Discussion 3. Fiscal Year 2024 Financial Updates Mr. Violette began by updated the Committee on the previous matter of the fine that was received by the Town from the IRS for an issue with the 1099 fillings for names and tax identification numbers not matching. He stated that the records were accurate and with the help of a tax attorney and Congressmen Jake Auchincloss's office the issue was resolved and he again reiterated that to be clear it was never a Town of Mansfield mistake and he is happy to have the matter resolved. Mr. Cooney asked what exactly happened and Mr. Violette further explained the matter. The second item he reported on was that the snow and ice budget was not over budget. Mr. Violette then stated that he reviewed the stabilization fund balances and how they are invested. He stated that there is $6,000,000 in the account and it earned $100,000 in interest. He also stated that Mass General Laws dictate how a Town can invest funds and it is limited to conservative accounts like money markets corporate bonds. Mr. Dumas arrived at 7:1113M. Ms. Walsh said in the report it shows "INV" and asked if that is investment income and Mr. Violette confirmed it was. Ms. Walsh then asked about the Capitalization Fund that has a balance of $59,000. Mr. Feely explained that it was set up to fund capital projects or for maintenance and the idea was to add funds to each year. Mr. Violette then continued his update noting that the General Fund local receipts which is mainly motor vehicle excise are current through March and have exceeded estimates. He then stated that General Fund expenditures similar to last year and the Town is 66% expended and are 75% of the way through the fiscal year. Lastly, he updated on the Enterprise Revenue side and stated that things are still trending down and most recent commitments are up for water and sewer. He also noted the Select Board voted rate increases for water of 6% and sewer for 2% rate increases. Ms. Walsh asked if the Town works with consultant for water and sewer rates and if the PFAS projects were factored in and Mr. Violette confirmed that it was David Fox from Raftelis. Mr. Cooney noted that he saw the presentation and Mr. Fox did a great job explaining everything. The Chair then skipped to agenda number seven reserve fund transfer. 4. Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Update Ms. Walsh stated that she would like to get an update from Mr. Dumas and Mr. Violette and for Committee members to save questions until the end. She stated that at the Tri-Board there may be a vote support taken. Mr. Dumas gave an update stating that the Town and School have both made significant reductions and also noted that all of the information is on the Town's website. Mr. Dumas then explained the proposal for the trash fee to close the budget gap. He went through the proposal and provided the history of the program and how the cost has increased since the program began back in 2000. He stated that originally the cost of the solid waste and recycling program was $912,000 and was approved by an override. The cost today of the program is $2,465,000. He stated that the gap is $815,000 and there are 6,710 carts so by diving that it would be an annual fee of $121.47 per residential customer. Mr. Dumas then reviewed the budget pressures explaining that the Health Insurance benefits for all Town and School employees, debt for projects, pension costs and property insurances all fall on the Town side and they are increasing at rates that are not sustainable. The costs are also not controlled by the Town. Mr. Dumas then reviewed the financial policies of the Town and how using stabilization funds can have a negative effect for bond ratings which can cost the residents more in the end for any of the borrowing done for future projects. Ms. Walsh thanked Mr. Dumas for the comprehensive explanation. She then asked each member if they had questions or comments. Mr. Flaherty said it was comprehensive and the cost is about $10 a month, which seems reasonable. He then asked if this was just for residential or if it was also for corporate customers and Mr. Dumas explained that it is only for residential customers who have bins. Mr. Cooney thanked him and said it's a small piece of the pie and some people will not understand it. Ms. Thurston commented that the whole picture explained helped her understand the budget better and what is proposed is in the best interest of the residents. Mr. Feely commented that he knows how much work went into the financial policies and appreciates that they are still holding up. He stated that everyone pays for trash in the taxes however commercial accounts pay for it but don't use the service. He felt that those who use the service should pay the fee in all fairness. Ms. Tarsi commented that the rising cost of trash and recycling is not unique to Mansfield, many communities are pulling back on curbside pick-up. Ms. Walsh read some questions that she had from Mr. Wilk who was on vacation and not able to be here tonight. He stated that there are three open positions in the Towns budget. Ms. Walsh stated at a previous budget meeting we compared the staffing to other towns and Mansfield is lower. Mr. Wilk suggests freezing the positions for this year because it is a tight budget year then the trash fee could be lowered. Ms. Walsh stated that other concerns that Mr, Wilk had were that the trash fee is addressing some of the inflation costs but we also know based on long term planning that the Town is looking at an override in 2026 and there is concern about the public perception, while even if the trash fee is the right thing to do it might not be the best timing. Mr, Dumas responded that there is still a hiring freeze in place except for public safety. He explained how the three vacancies of the admin in the Town Manager's office, the page at the library and the front desk of the COA are affecting those respective departments because of the vacancies. Mr. Dumas explained that he put the hiring freeze in place because he did not want to hire people and then have to lay them off a few months later, but thought it was an important decision but it has caused a burden on each of the departments. 5. Trash and Recycling Fee The discussion was part of the previous agenda item. Ms. Walsh stated that the Select Board were seeking a recommendation on the trash fee by the Finance Committee. All six members stated that they were in support of a trash fee. 6. Long Range Forecast Ms. Walsh stated that we asked for Mr. Dumas and Mr. Violette to complete a long-range forecast. She stated that it is a working document and plan to use it year over year. Mr. Violette stated that it is a working draft document and when looking through the document the advantage is that the Town has a good handle on revenues and are limited to proposition two and a half. He stated that new growth is variable however State Aid is a flat number and it makes up twenty percent of budget. Mr. Violette stated that the big thing to talk about are the non -discretionary costs of insurance, non -excluded debt and employee benefits. Mr. Violette stated that it is important to get consensus around this and this will help the path forward for budgeting. Mr. Dumas asked if the Tri-Board meeting could start at 7PM next week and everyone agreed that would work better for some individuals. Mr. Dumas and Mr. Violette left the meeting at 9PM. 7. Reserve Fund Transfer Mr. Violette stated that he has two reserve fund transfers to present however they are unique transfers and he explained that the first was for the Airport and the second was for a vehicle for the parking enforcement officer. Mr. Violette explained that that these funds were put into the Finance Committee Reserve Fund after free cash and enterprise account retained earnings were certified and would require a vote of the Finance Committee to move the funds. Motion: To approve a $22,500 transfer from the Airport Enterprise Reserve Fund to Account Number 65482300-58000 Airport Capital Outlay. (Feely/Cooney) Passes 6:0 Roll Call Vote: Tarsi — Aye Feely — Aye Walsh —Aye Thurston — Aye Cooney —Aye Flaherty — Yes Motion: To approve a $50,000 transfer from the Parking Enterprise Reserve Fund to Account Number 64481300-58600 Parking Enterprise Vehicular Equipment. (Feely/Cooney) Passes 6:0 Roll Call Vote: Tarsi — Aye Feely — Aye Walsh — Yes Thurston —Aye Cooney —Aye Flaherty — Yes Questions from the Community 8. Questions from the Community There were no comments or questions from the community. Committee Business 9. Survey Discussion Ms. Tarsi had some changes and there may be questions that should be added from committees. She thought the Town and School Needs Assessment committee may have some. Ms. Walsh asked when is the goal to send out and Ms. Tarsi said It could be done after Town Meeting. 10. Letters to Representatives and Representatives Ms. Walsh stated that it sounds like the representatives hear the needs but should the Finance Committee send a letter. Ms. Tarsi stated a meeting with the representatives at a Tri-Board meeting could be helpful. 11. Town Meeting Planning Ms. Walsh stated that Town Meeting is May 22, 2024 and the regular Finance Committee is May 16th and at that meeting the Committee can review all of the articles. 12. Committee Updates Mr. Cooney stated that the Audit Committee is meeting next week and he was unsure if he could attend however he spoke to Mr. Violette who will catch him up on anything he misses. Mr. Feely provided a detailed update on Capital Improvements Plan (CIP) everything was put off on the Town side except the road bond. The enterprises have projects and funds to do it and some of the items for the Schools were pulled out of the operating budget and being funded through capital. He stated in the fall items will be reviewed and there is an ambulance scheduled to be funded. Ms. Tarsi-Goldfein stated that the Town and School Needs Assessment met and Ms. Murphy gave her opinion on what was most important and acknowledged the importance of matching up with MSBA grants and sequence those correctly and there will be more discussion at the next meeting in June. She further noted that MSBA grants are only for renovations and not for new construction. Mr. Flaherty left the meeting at 9:05PM. 13. Items Not Known in 48 Hours There were no items. 14. Finance Committee Member Comments There were none. 15. Adjourn Motion: To adjourn the Finance Committee meeting of April 18, 2024 at 9:1513M. (Feely/Tarsi) Passes 5:0 Roll Call Vote: Tarsi —Yes Feely — Yes Walsh —Yes Thurston —Yes 2, Cooney — Sig re Minutes prepared by Carrie Champagne 51((,2 Date