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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFINCOM MIN 07232009 Town of Mansfield Finance Committee Minutes of July 23, 2009 Attending: James Lazzara Charlene Lavin Andres Gazzolo Karl Chambers Tommy Ratliff Motion: To Open at 7:30p.m. (Chambers - Lazzara) 5 - 0 Passes Mr. Lazzara gave a review of the previous week's meeting. He said that the Finance Committee met with the town counsel to review the interpretation of the charter and a potential amendment to be made. He said that once the amendment is drafted it will need to pass at the town meeting with a two thirds approval, followed by a ballot. He said that this amendment would give the Board of Selectmen the option to be more involved in contract negotiation and the ability to veto a contract before it is signed. Mr. Lazzara said that the Finance Committee will approve the amendment draft and then submit it to the Board of Selectmen as a recommendation. Mr. Lazzara said that he was unsure if it would need to go to the attorney general's office for approval before implementation. Mr. Gazzolo said that hopefully this item could be presented at the next town meeting in the fall. Mr. Gazzolo reviewed the open items with the rest of the Finance Committee. He said that with the way the state is going the town should be prepared for more cuts to be made from the state level for fiscal year 2010. He also said that the stimulus money that the school's expected to get in June may not be there until October. Mr. Gazzolo said that some contracts that were signed were not in the budget and that the town may need to hold a meeting in August to see whether they can get the funds to support these contracts. He said that right now the town is paying a lot of legal fees regarding this from the legal item line and that this will be a significant expense for the town. Ms. Lavin asked if this expense could potentially cause another layoff. Mr. Gazzolo said that it could and that he invited the fire chief to attend the next Finance Committee meeting to discuss these contract negotiations. Mr. Gazzolo said that the town should take a look at ambulance service to see if there is potential for savings. He also said that the town should look at how the GIS system is supported and decide whether it is more cost effective to have maintained by an outside provider. Mr. Gazzolo said that the town does not currently have a contract with an auditor. He said that he has asked Mr. Goldberg to look into the town's options. Mr. Gazzolo said that the consolidation committee is close to being formed but does not have the two representatives from the Board of Selectmen. He said that he received a flow chart from the acting Town Manager of all of the employees in town hall. He said that the acting Town Manager is working to get job descriptions for every position. Mr. Gazzolo said that they are working on the five year forecast, however, he preferred to wait to discuss it until Mr. Arnold is present. Mr. Gazzolo said that Ms. Lavin sent the Finance Committee the minutes from the last Capital Committee meeting. Ms. Lavin said that it was because the priorities were listed in those minutes and she thought it would be helpful to the Finance Committee. ,- '~'.~---~-'""--""-"--~~~"'~.",_._~._,...~,...........~.,,-,---~ ... T --_...,.".--._,........._~,..._._~~-".~.._.~"'....._,_."..."_.,...,-"..."", . ~~ . .- _- i(\r . i 'vi.:. ,", '):) /\ r ,:.. ~..... r, i /- f~) Mr. Gazzolo requested that Mr. Ratliff look at the ambulance service alternatives and that he would look at the GIS options and invite them to a future meeting to discuss them. Mr. Gazzolo said that Ms. Kearney sent an email to him about two transfers; he said she was closing out the last fiscal year and found a few errors. He explained the two transfers; the first was from the MIS technical support line to the Town Manager secretarial line and the other was from the MIS technical support line to the accountant management salary line. He said that these transfers will go before the Board of Selectmen for the fiscal year 2009 budget. Vote Motion to support the two transfers; the first from the MIS technical support line to the Town Manager secretarial line and the other was from the MIS technical support line to the accountant management salary line. (Lazzara - Lavin) 5 - 0 Passes Mr. Lazzara said that the new accounting software that the town is using should be compatible with the Finance Committee's budget model. Mr. Gazzola read an email that Mr. Goldberg had sent in regards to the unfunded liability. He had learned that the state is required to put a percentage of their budget towards its unfunded liability and he was unsure at that point if that was also required of the municipalities. Mr. Lazzara said that he had attempted to call the statehouse to get some more information on that. Mr. Lazzara asked Ms. Lavin about the capital priorities and if the schools have an estimate on the cost of the emergency exit. Ms. Lavin said that they are working on it and they have established their priorities. She said that the dam expenses may come from somewhere else and that the town is looking at other funding options for that project. She said that they should speak with the chief about the two ambulances that were out of service recently. Mr. Gazzolo said that Mr. Moran recently brought up housing for the elderly and mentioned that maybe it belongs in the capital projects. There was a brief discussion on what constitutes affordable housing. Mr. Gazzolo said that he would speak with Mr. Moran about this again. Motion: To Close at 8:30p.m. (Lazzara - Lavin) 5 - 0 Passes '}, ,'/){) I Oo! Date of Approval 'I"