Finance Committee Meeting Minutes 5-16-2023
Finance Committee meeting
Minutes of the meeting 5/16/23
Meeting Date: Tuesday May 16, 2023
Meeting Opened at 5:02 pm
Finance Committee Members present: Frank Abbott, Ilene Marcus, Jeff Zimmerman
Other individuals present: Laurie McArthur (Office Assistant), Mickey Jervas
Call to Order at 5:02pm
Agenda
Welcome new member
The Finance Committee welcomed Jeff Zimmerman to the committee.
The Finance Committee discussed the process of adding a new member to the Finance Committee to replace Frank when he transitions to solely working with the Select Board. Ilene said that they would need to meet with the Select Board to determine the process. Ilene also suggested holding a joint meeting with the Select Board to debrief on the Warrant process.
Frank suggested adding a deadline to the Capital Policy items to help with efficiency, and Ilene discussed a preference to focus on needs.
Vote new chair
Frank nominated Ilene Marcus as the new chair of the Finance Committee. Jeff seconded. Call a vote: Frank-yes, Jeff-yes, Ilene-yes.
Unanticipated Business
Ilene suggested reviewing the Warrant with the new Finance Committee member, along with the Capital Plan. Frank suggested having Capital requests due by January 31st. Ilene suggested a meeting with the Department heads so they can meet the new Finance Committee member, along with holding a workshop on the concept of zero based budgeting. Frank concurred that this should be held at the start of the financial year. The Finance Committee discussed the concept of zero based budgeting along with challenges associated with creating the most recent budget.
Ilene recommended being able to have access to a printer, and the need to have access to the Town Administrators collaborative budgeting sheet. The Finance Committee discussed the preference to be able to modify the spreadsheet in order to increase ease of readability by the Finance Committee. The Finance Committee discussed how to make accommodations to the spreadsheets and while finding some middle ground amongst the budget and spreadsheets.
Ilene will send an email regarding the Warrant and review process to the Select Board. Frank will update the Select Board about the new Finance Committee Chair along with zero- budgeting and training for this. Jeff offered to assist with providing education about zero-based budgeting. Frank will work on getting the Capital Policy through, Jeff will work on the spreadsheets and review the materials, and from here a future training will be determined. The Finance Committee discussed the functional aspect of the books along with implementing the budget and looking into compensation concerns for some employees.
Ilene discussed the Transfer Request concerns. Mickey discussed a transfer request for $100 needed for books. The Finance Committee reviewed the request. Mickey discussed the previous request for the $400 for the wages, and the current $100 transfer request for the matching of materials, which had been previously excluded. However, this component was not added to the Special Town meeting, and the Library committee did not add this into the Annual Warrant. The Finance Committee discussed how this was missed in the budget. Mickey reported that they have enough in the Maintenance fund to transfer this into wages.
Ilene explained how the Transfer Request process worked. Frank reviewed the second request which was for an anticipated transfer from Maintenance to Wages in the amount of $1,282. Jeff suggested a section to provide information regarding the request. The Finance Committee discussed how this was actually a Transfer Appropriation as opposed to a Transfer Request.
The Finance Committee discussed tentatively holding their next meeting on Tuesday 5/30/23 at 5:30pm, along with another meeting on Tuesday July 11th at 5:30pm.
Frank made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 6:00pm. Ilene seconded. Call a vote: Ilene-yes, Frank-yes, Jeff-yes.
Documents used at the Meeting
- Transfer appropriation request for $100 from Maintenance for the matching of materials
- Transfer appropriation request for $1,282 from Maintenance for anticipated payroll overage.