TOWN OF
The Board of Selectmen joined the FinCom Meeting at
Other
attendees: Town Manager
The following are meeting minutes as recorded by the Finance Committee:
The Finance Committee
was joined by the Board of Selectmen, the School Committee, the Superintendent
of School, other School officials, and a large public audience for a joint
hearing on the Schools’ budget.
Ms. Waugh gave a brief
summary of the budget which had been approved by the School Committee the
previous evening. The initial draft budget prepared in December proposed a
roughly $300K increase over the current year. Given the fiscal situation of the
Town, the Superintendent and the School Committee were able to pare that down,
and are now proposing a level funded budget of $3,647,904.88 which is $4,434.99
lower (-.12%) than the current year.
After some discussion,
it was agreed by all that there would review the school budget department by
department, focusing on those items that had the biggest change – plus or
minus.
School Committee - Presented by Superintendent Jessica Waugh &
the Administrative Assistant for Business & Finance, Betty White.
The proposed School
Committee budget ($18,410) has been reduced by $3,300 (15.2%)
Line item School
Committee Contracted Services reflects a $4,000 decrease in liability
insurance.
Line item School
Committee Advertising has been increased by $1,200 from $3,800 to $5,000. This
covers advertising for teacher positions, legal notices, public hearing
notices, etc. This line item has been consistently overrun in previous years.
The actual year-to-date amount spent as of
Superintendent’s Office - Presented by Superintendent Jessica Waugh &
the Administrative Assistant for Business & Finance, Betty White.
The proposed
Superintendent’s Office budget has been reduced by $845.44 (0.34%).
Two items in the
Superintendent’s budget sparked vigorous discussion. First, the
Superintendent’s salary was cut by 20% ($19,000). Second, the salaries of the
two Administrative Assistants were increased by slightly over $12,000 each.
Ms. Waugh explained
that the cut in her salary was voluntary and permanent. She proposed the cut to
demonstrate her commitment to the schools. Members of the School Committee
confirmed that Ms. Waugh had made this cut voluntarily, despite their own
objections.
Regarding the second
issue, Ms. Waugh and Ms. White provided the following explanation:
·
Due to
consolidation of positions, responsibilities of the two positions have expanded
greatly.
·
The job
descriptions have been re-written to reflect the new responsibilities.
·
Two step
increases have been added at 7% each.
·
Annual increases also include 3% cost of living
adjustments and longevity.
·
The amounts in the budget reflect the second
year of a three year contract.
·
The
increases for the first year of the new contract are not reflected in the
current year (FY08) budget, making the yearly increase look larger than it
really is.
The concerns raised by
members of the Finance Committee, and the Board of Selectmen can be summarized
as follows:
1. The cut in the Superintendent’s salary, even if voluntary,
could set a bad precedent going forward when the time comes to hire a new
Superintendent.
2. Even if justified, the increases in the Administrative
Assistants salaries during a period of budget constraint send the wrong message
to other Town employees who are facing potential job cuts and the prospect of
getting no raises at all.
3. The two taken together create the appearance that the budget
has been balanced artificially.
The proposed FY09 VMES
budget ($1,221,134.16) is $85,536.06 representing (7.53%) higher than this
year. Enrollment as of
Many of the
Committee’s questions related to increases in salary lines. Most of those are per
union contracts with a few exceptions noted below.
·
Part-time
teaching specialist salaries increased by $29,956.53 (119.04%). This was
described as a positive educational move by the Superintendent.
·
Compensation
for the part-time librarian increased by $8,389.05 (43.13%) because the
librarian has taken on the additional responsibility of teaching technology
classes for Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 6 students.
·
The nurse
is now full-time for VMES only; a second nurse covers PHS under a matching
grant program. Prior to this change the nurse’s salary was split between the
VMES and PHS budgets.
Other items of note
that were discussed:
·
Pupil
transportation costs are covered by School Choice income and thus show as $0 in
the budget.
·
Heating
costs have risen by $14,000 (21.28%). No surprise there.
·
The school
pays $4,000 for maintenance of its 58 phone lines. When the Town replaces its
system, the schools should share the same system to reduce costs.
Due to the regular Board of Selectmen’s meeting
scheduled to start at
Minutes submitted for
posting by: Vernon G. Porter, Secretary to Board of Selectmen
April 30, 2008