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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFINCOMminutes09062012 • Town of Mansfield Finance Committee Minutes of September 6, 2012 ."E,.;r S OFFICE Present: Members James Bazinet, Liz Christo, Michael O'Bri 'IZ LI, Chairman Walter Wilk. Others present included Superintendent of S h qls r r J`e�, Scott Feely and Business Manager Ed Vozzella. Also in attendance were members o . re15c a Hmdges and School Trowbridge, Kiera O'Neil, Lisa Losiewicz, Jean Miller and Wayne Smith. John ISta nbrookk,, Town Accountant, and Bernadette Conroy, Special Education Director, were also in attendance. Absent: n/a Call to Order: Chairman Wilk called the meeting to order at 7:38 p.m. Approval of Minutes Chairman Wilk asked if there were any suggested changes to the minutes, and there were none. Minutes of June 28, 2012: Motion: To approve the minutes ofJune 28, 2012 (Bazinet/Shoonveld) Roll call vote: Christo aye, Bazinet aye, O'Brien aye, Schoonveld aye, Feely aye, Chairman Wilk aye. Minutes of July 12, 2012: Motion: To approve the minutes of July 12, 2012 (O'Brien/Shoonveld) Roll call vote: Christo aye, Bazinet aye, O'Brien aye, Schoonveld aye, Feely aye, Chairman Wilk aye. School Department 2012 to 2013 and 2013 to 2014 Budget Review Mr. Wilk explained the process by which the Finance Committee is reviewing the financial practices of the departments within the Town. Mrs. Hodges thanked the Committee for offering them an opportunity to share the budget challenges the School Department faces. She directed the Committee's attention to the various documents emailed to the Committee by Mr. Vozzella. Mr. Vozzella presented an agenda of items (1 through 8) to be discussed. 1. The Budget Process. Mr. Vozzella directed the Committee's attention to paragraph 4 of the document titled "Budget Process," which indicates that it is the intention of the School Committee to work closely with the Town Manager and Finance Committee early in the budget process. He then addressed the fiscal management goals. He discussed the difficulty of implementing goal#8 (To provide sufficient funds to implement improvements to existing programs and to implement new programs.) He stated that there aren't sufficient funds to meet this goal, but that it is a critical goal of the Department. Mr. Vozzella then directed the Committee's attention to the "Budget Timeline" portion of this document. Page I 1 • He indicated that in October, they begin meeting with the principals and directors to ascertain their budget needs. They work with the principals and directors on finalizing an initial budget for presentation to the School Committee in mid-December. Mr. Wilk asked about the timeframe of the contracts up for negotiation and where this falls within the timeline. Mr. Vozzella explained that the contracts will not be fully negotiated until after the budgeting process has been completed. He indicated that they do what they can to make appropriate assumptions when preparing the budget. Mr. Wilk asked if the Unions could be approached in an attempt to accelerate the process, and members of the School Committee agreed. Mr. Wilk indicated that both the Town and the Schools will be asked for preliminary numbers in January. Mr. Vozzella then discussed the budget management process. He stated that principals are given the responsibility and authority to spend within their budgets. Mr. Vozzella stated that each principal and director is asked to take 10% of all non-fixed budgeted items and put it into reserve. This allows for emergency spending for unforeseen circumstances. Mr. Vozzella explained that this is the reason for late year spending; when the need to retain those funds dwindles towards the end of the year, principals and directors are then able to spend on items that they have gone without during the year. Mr. Shoonveld asked what happens to the money left in the budget at the end of the fiscal year. Mr. Vozzella explained that those funds are turned back over to the town and that the schools typically see those funds given back in the next fiscal year. He also indicated that, when there are significant variances, for instance in special education, they will try to use some of those remaining funds to cover capital items, such as the replacement of chairs. 2. Issues that Impact the Budget Special Education Ms. Bernadette Conroy, Special Education Director addressed the Committee about the challenges she faces when formulating the special education budget. Mrs. Hodges indicated that special education is a very volatile piece of the budget and that projections are made the best way possible. By law, staff need to be hired to meet the terms of students' IEPs. Chairman Wilk asked if the state reimburses the Town for any special education expenditures, and Ms. Conroy explained that circuit breaker provides a percentage back after expending $38,000, but that the circuit breaker percentage returns change year to year and are not predictable. She also explained that transportation costs are not eligible for reimbursement under the circuit breaker. Ms. Conroy indicated that Mansfield has the second lowest percentage in the area of students placed outside of the district. She stated that this is because Mansfield is often able to meet the needs of students within the district by building programs to meet their needs or by placing students in a collaborative. Mrs. Hodges pointed out the chart entitled "In District vs. Out of District Cost Analysis" and directed the Committee's attention to the cost savings associated with in-district placements. Mr. Feely asked whether or not the Town could accept students from other school districts and realize a profit. Mrs. Hodges -- indicated that Mansfield would have to become a school choice district in order to accept these students. Page i 2 Mr. Feely pointed out the increased cost of special education bus maintenance this year over last year and inquired whether some of the buses should be replaced. Mr. Vozzella agreed that it might be time to replace some of the vans, and they cost approximately$60,000 each. Mrs. Hodges expressed the concern that, when looking to cut in the budget, they are not able to cut special education teachers or paraprofessionals because of the mandates. The unfortunate result is that the regular education teaching staff must bear the brunt of any necessary staff cuts. Other Unfunded Mandates Mrs. Hodges outlined the other unfunded mandates such as mandatory English Language Learners training for all teachers and staff. She stated that, in addition to paying whatever costs are associated with the training courses themselves, the District will also be responsible for securing substitutes for the classroom teachers and possibly for transportation costs associated with travel to the training sessions. She stated that there is no funding from the state for this mandated training. She also outlined an emerging mandate which is aimed at keeping students in the classroom. She explained that if a student is excluded from the classroom, the District will be mandated to find other means to provide the missed instruction to that student, through tutoring or otherwise. When asked by Chairman Wilk how many students could potentially fall into this category, Mrs. Hodges indicated that she thought it would be approximately 300 student days. Teacher Evaluation Model Mrs. Hodges explained that the District will be responsible for training all teachers in the new evaluation process and for developing the evaluation tool, and that it must be in place by September of 2013. There is no cost analysis because new information was received over the summer mandating training for superintendents. Mrs. Hodges indicated that this will also be a subject of negotiations with teachers. Mr. Wilk asked that the School Department present a separate spreadsheet setting forth all projected unfunded mandates and that they keep the Finance Committee advised of any new mandates over the course of the budget preparation. Mrs. Hodges agreed and indicated that the costs simply are not known at this time. Unanticipated Costs Mrs. Hodges also indicated that there are unanticipated costs, and she used as examples the condensation problem at the Robinson School and the need to add a monitor following a court order that two students to keep apart. 3. Revolvers-Overview Mr. Vozzella explained to the Committee the purpose of revolving funds, funds with an express purpose and separate accounting. He presented a spreadsheet showing the larger revolving funds. He stated that the School Department has the ability to use the revolving funds to reduce the burden on the general budget. Later in the budget process he will have a better idea of what will be in these revolvers. Ms. Page 13 Page 14 Christo suggested that the expenses associated with the revolving funds should be included in the budget for approval at town meeting. Mr. Vozzella indicated that Mansfield is very lucky to have the CHAMPS program in that it is a good source of additional funds for the schools. 4. Capital Needs The schools will have to have preliminary requests ready for the Capital Needs Committee in late September. In particular, Mr. Feely asked about the gym floor and the impact of waiting to replace it. Mr. Trowbridge indicated that there are some large expenditures which will have to be made, and they need to be prioritized. Mr. Vozzella indicated that the cost of many of the items has not yet been determined. 5. Enrollment Mr. Vozzella reviewed the enrollment projections outlined in the spreadsheet provided to the Committee. 6. Contracts The impact on contract negotiations on the budget was previously discussed. 7. Potential Savings/Shared services Mrs. Hodges stated that she and Mr. Vozzella will be working with the Town Manager to find areas of potential savings through the sharing of services. Closing Statements Mr. Wilk asked if there was anything which could be identified now that may prove to be a problem in this budget for the School Department, and Mr. Vozzella indicated that it is too early to tell at this point. Mr. Wilk asked if Mrs. Hodges would keep the Committee advised on a monthly basis of any anticipated problems. Ms. Losiewicz commented that the budget subcommittee is a good forum for expressing these concerns. Mr. Wilk suggested that an email when something becomes an issue would be helpful. Mr. Feely indicated that frequent reports to the finance committee will assist in educating members at Town meeting. After discussion it was agreed that Mr. Vozzella would present a spreadsheet quarterly which would show the amount expended from each budget up to that point in time. Adjourn Motion to Adjourn (Shoonveld/Feely) Roll call vote: Christo aye, Bazinet aye, O'Brien aye, Schoonveld aye, Feely aye, Chairman Wilk aye.•Clerk: 0411/14-114/' Date: I 1 / I Z_ Page 14