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Minutes of May 18, 2011

May 23rd, 2011

Minutes of the May 18, 2011 Carroll Budget Committee meeting

A regularly noticed meeting of the elected Budget Committee was called to order at 7:01 by Bill Vecchio, Chair. Members in attendance: Dan Walker, Linda Dowling, Mark Catalano, Joan Karpf, Sue Kraabel, Karen Moran.
Nancy Mitiguay was filming the meeting on behalf of the Carroll Information Group.

Chair asked for a review of the April 2011 meeting minutes:
On page 2, Sue noted that reference to the rail fund should state that it may or may not be yearly. Dan moved to accept the change and Linda seconded. All were in favor.
Also on page 2, Sue clarified that Miscellaneous Revenue would not include rent for use of the town hall. Residents are asked for a security deposit, which is returned as long as there is no damage. The town hall is not rented to non-residents.
On page 3, Sue clarified that the account number prefixes for “06” should read “Police Detail” and “08” is not Interest and Investment Earnings, but rather is the Library. Therefore, the account number prefixes are:
01-General Fund
02-Ambulance
03-Recycling
04-Water
05-Planning Board
06-Police Detail
08-Library

Chair requested nominations for Vice Chair. Karen nominated Linda, Bill seconded, and all were in favor.

Chair moved to discuss the period to date revenues and expenses which had been made available by email in pdf. Sue informed the group that the information is literally as of the date compiled, which was mid May. Next month’s revenue and expense data will be for the period ending at month end of the prior month. The information should be available in the format provided, by Friday before the next week’s Wednesday meeting.

Chair discussed the Street Lighting line item which at $16,000. With an emphasis on safety, Chair wondered if the town has considered turning some of the lights off. Sue noted that in prior years, some had been turned off. Joan wondered if there was a state requirement on the state roads for lighting. Linda noted that Conway had turned every other street light off. Chair noted that Conway is a NHEC customer and he is aware that they shut off 125 street lights at considerable savings. There are emerging energy efficiency programs with costs lower than previous years, although the installation for the measures can be costly. Joan and Bill both discussed the availability of grants through PSNH or other agencies. Chair stated again that safety is critical and discussed possible on/off midnight programming. He would look into that.

Chair also wondered about the Heating Oil expense on page three and questioned for what buildings the line existed. Sue noted that the heating oil is used for the town hall, highway garage, fire department, police department and transfer station. A question was raised regarding the use of used motor oil at the transfer station, and Sue indicated that waste oil is used, but standard heating oil is also used.
Chair indicated that he would look into grants for insulation and general energy efficiency. Joan indicated that there are several sources she has seen since being on the conservation commission.
Chair indicated that things such as compact fluorescent light bulbs can be purchased for under $1 and would be ideal for the information booth.

Chair indicated that he will try, but may not be able to attend the next meeting in June. He would let the group know.

Linda question for what the Planning Board Good and Welfare expense line item was and Sue indicated that it is used if someone on the Board is in the hospital or similar, flowers could be sent.

Linda asked if the town funds the Mount Washington Regional airport and Sue said no.

Linda asked about the dispatching line items for Police and Fire and the differences among Grafton, Twin State Mutual Aid, etc. Dan noted that the town fire is dispatched through Twin State, but Twin State has a contract with Grafton County. In the Police, dispatch is through the state police or Grafton County. Payments are based on prior year dispatch calls as % of total dispatch. Karen suggested we ask for clarification from both chiefs.

Linda questioned how many cross-over emergency service people we have, that is, how many are both police and fire. Karen noted that the two fire department employees are part time police. Others, such as chief Trammell, T. Bailey, B. Smalley are on the police force, and are members of the on call fire department. Linda wondered what the cost was to certify/train a part time police officer. The training line item in the police budget $1,500 was suggested as ongoing training as all must go through various training annually. Who has and how many cell phones was also discussed, and Sue thought the fire department has some as there is a US Cellular invoice paid, and the full-time police each have one.
Line items were also noted for Time Warner and Verizon Wireless. Joan suggested the Verizon Wireless may be for the in-car computers in the police cruisers. Sue noted that the town hall has communication and internet services bundled through Time Warner, as does the transfer station and highway garage.

Regarding acronyms in the police and fire, Linda wondered what IMC was and Mark thought it might be the software for special access to legal information. Accurint Sue suggested was for background checks.
In the fire department, ALS was defined by Karen to be Advanced Life Support.

Sue noted that accounts 01-3404-01, 01-3404-02, and 01-3404-03 should be deleted, as the accounts which begin with prefix 03 are used rather than prefix 01. Dan also asked if 01-3354-01 should be deleted and Sue agreed.

Linda questioned the budgeted anticipated water revenue, listed at $130,000. Sue indicated that the previous budget committee developed the projected revenue, but she is not sure on what basis.

Regarding revenue on page 4, from Coos County, it was noted that that represents Carroll’s responses for emergencies in unincorporated places.

Linda noted that at the prior meeting, Lori Hogan had indicated that the committee must work on the budgeted revenues as well as expenses. Sue reminded the group that the revenues must be part of the MS-7 form for which the committee is responsible. She also noted that the revenues on the budget worksheets (which were sent by email in pdf) are those from the 2011 MS-7. MS-4 is completed at tax time (by the Selectboard) and based on actual and estimated expenses.
Sue noted that the water grant estimate of $4,000 is too low and should be probably $8,000. It is funding received twice per year, as a result of the water expansion a few years ago.

Karen asked about the Comstar expenses, as the 80/20 split did not appear to be reflected. Mark thought the question related to the budget, Karen said actual period to date. Sue said she would check on the allocation with the office staff.

Karen asked about the highway helper expenses on page 7 and was told that the amounts should have been posted to Road Agent line item, as Greg Hogan is now Road Agent. Sue noted it has already been adjusted.

Karen asked about several accounts, primarily on page 8 in the transfer station section, which reflected expenses posted to line items with zero budgeted. Mark noted that Bill Dowling had zeroed out several expense accounts in his budget, as many things are now being processed through the special revenue fund. Sue will look into the expenses, as Karen reminded the group that expense lines with zero as a budgeted amount cannot be used. Typically if an account is a possibility, $1 is put in the line item as a place holder.

Linda asked if money can be paid directly out of the special revenue fund, or if it has to go through the general fund. Sue noted that use of the special revenue fund for items formerly expensed through the general fund has created a cumbersome process. It was previously used for bulky waste disposal. The special revenue fund can only have a limited number of transfers done per month. Mark noted that the current process of disbursing the money out of the general fund, while cumbersome, represents better controls. Sue indicated she is holding several transfer requests for very small dollar amounts, until month end when she will do one transfer.

Sue noted that the money market fund in which the general fund resides does pay interest, but the rate is very low at the moment. Nightly cash sweeps, which invest excess funds into overnight collateralized repurchase agreements, has been stopped temporarily, as the sweep fee is higher than the overnight investment pays. Joan asked about other investments, and Sue noted that the general fund money can only be invested in very specific entities, such as a specific NH bank, a bank chartered to do business in NH, or PDIP. FDIC laws, rules, and regulations also are involved. Sue also noted that the general fund balance is low due to tax bills and thus receipts have not been issued, and also as a result of the surplus being used last year to reduce the tax rate.

Karen asked about the status of the warrant article approved ambulance, as $20,XXX has been expensed for a defibrillator. Mark noted that three quotes have been received and they will choose one and go with that.

Dan noted that overall, the percentages remaining in the expense buckets look reasonable based on the amount of time into the year.

Chair provided a summary of the 2003 – 2009 historical proposed budgets, as compiled by L. Hogan.
Mark wondered if the summary excluded the warrant articles for those years, and it appears those are excluded.

Dan asked if the select board salaries are paid annually and was told yes, at year end. Fire fighter salaries are paid twice per year in June and December.

Regarding a review of the by-laws, Linda proposed replacing items #6 and 7 on page one with a procedural “rules of respect and tolerance” document adopted by the prior committee. Karen suggested the rules were too specific to be in the by-laws and suggested they could be reviewed and adopted as rules, as the prior committee had been. Chair noted it is important to have the information and to ensure that everybody understands the by-laws and any rules. Mark noted that the Chair may find it somewhat frustrating if personalities of members of the public come into play during a public session. Rules are handy but the public does need to be able to express opinions, just in a polite manner, such as following Roberts Rules. Chair noted that reference to Roberts is currently in the by-laws so would like the committee’s opinion of where the proposed “rules of respect and tolerance” should reside, and the committee agreed that outside of the by-laws is preferable. The rules will be reviewed by the Chair and re-typed so the committee can review them at the next meeting.
Joan suggested that the LGC has meeting rules that could be used as a guide. Chair agreed that that information is probably on their website. Mark noted that in the current issue of Town and City is an excellent article about managing the public. He noted he would find the article and bring to the next meeting. Chair thought he might have it, and if he did he would scan it and email it to the group.

Other by-law discussion: Under the Schedule of Meetings, add reference to the town website. Regarding Point of Order, it was clarified that if an error is made in a meeting, a member of the committee or public can call “point of order” to request that the error be addressed. The word “immediately” will be added. The committee agreed that the by-laws should express that any tie vote on an issue means the issue is defeated. Discussion took place regarding if and when the Chair should vote. Chair noted that he sought to be on the committee so that he would have a voice and he intends to vote. All agreed.
Linda questioned if the quorum count of 4 was reasonable, and Sue noted she thought it was in statute. There was no further discussion of the quorum.
Chair then asked each member if they had any comments on the by-laws:
Dan noted that he agreed that stating a tie means defeat is important.
Linda agreed with Dan and also reminded the group about including the town website
Mark agreed with Dan and Linda
Chair wondered on page 1, item #4. Linda clarified that RSA 91-A allows the public to observe but not participate. Mark noted that it will be a challenge for the Chair to maintain order and respect. Chair wondered if a time frame could be included. Joan noted that the public meetings are literally open to the public for their input, but then the public portion of the meeting is closed and the committee continues its work. Chair understood that public input and his response will be situational.
Karen wondered if a conformed signature could be noted on the online minutes, as the secretary is supposed to sign the minutes, which cannot be accomplished electronically. All agreed.
Linda offered to send a copy of the by-laws by pdf which can be edited. Sue offered to do the edits.

Discussion of the availability of LGC seminars took place, and the calendar of workshops can be found online. Sue offered to make copies of the 2010 LGC workshop booklet for any who wanted it. Joan had prior DRA seminar information including forms, emergency expenditures RSA 32:11 MS-4E, SB2 technical assistance, definitions RSA 32, suggested warrant article language. Sue will make copies of all of the information Joan brought.

Chair noted that the timeline for the public hearings as required by DRA and provided to him at the April meeting looks correct.

Chair noted that the post office box used by the prior committee to receive the surveys had expired. He wondered if we needed a separate one, as the cost is $100. All agreed that any mail the committee might receive could be sent to the town hall and the separate box was unnecessary. He noted the key had been returned to the postmaster.

Linda motioned for adjourn, Dan seconded, and the chair closed the meeting at 8:52pm

The next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday June 15, 2011 at 7:00.

Respectfully submitted,
/s/ Karen Moran

Town of Carroll, New Hampshire ®2024