BC20111006

APPROVED

TOWN OF PELHAM

BUDGET COMM= ITTEE - MEETING MINUTES

Thursday, October 6, 2011

APPROVED &#= 8211; January 12, 2012

CALL TO ORDER – 7:30pm

PRESENT:

Also Present:

Mr. Larry Hall, Mr. Dan= iel Guimond, Mr. John Lavallee, Mr. Gregory Farris, Mr. Robert Sherman, Mr. J= oe Puddister, Mr. David Cate, Mr. Ken Dunne, Selectmen Representative Edmund Gleason, School Board Representative Meghan Larson

Police Chief Joseph Roa= rk, Town Finance Director Cindy Kelley

ABSENT:

Mr. Dennis Viger

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

MINUTES REVIEW

September = 19, 2011

MOTION:

(Guimond/Laval= lee)To approve the Se= ptember 19, 2011 meeting minutes as amended.

VOTE:

(9-0-0) The motion carried.

2012 BUDGET REVIEW AGENDA

Town Budgets

Assessor – No questions/changes.

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Budget Committee – Reduction made.

Supplies –= 10 4” budget binders was reduce= d to 4 10” budget binders

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Cable –

Equipment Repair= - Mr. Lavallee didn’t recall what the $3000 increase was being used for. Mr. Puddister had a note indicatin= g the increase was 2 hard drives for digital playbacks and replace CRT monitors w= ith flat screens. The items were previously moved from new equipment into repairs.

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Cemetery – Clarification received regarding plants. The amount for flowers showed an increase because plants were being placed along the gates out front as well= as around the flagpole area. The flowers were more expensive; however, they lasted longer during the season. Fertilizer was increa= sed due to an increased area being tended to. Mr. Guimond noted that the Ce= metery Trustees could request money from the Trustees, but hadn’t done so. He recalled there was a substantial amount of money and questioned why they didn’t do so. Mr. Lavallee spoke with a Cemetery Trustee and believed they were going to do two things: 1) request funds to = be used at the cemetery – presentation once the plan has solidified; and= 2) discussing possibly going to court to get some of the funds contained in perpetual care. Mr. Hall made= note that the budget contained $18,000, which was for the last year (of three) f= or the graves expansion plan.

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Conservation Commission – No questions/changes.

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Debt Service Interest – Mr. Lavallee asked when TAN money= had been used. Ms. Kelley believe= d it hadn’t been used since 2007. Selectman Viger found it interesting that during good times tax inco= me is received slower than in the present (difficult economy) time.

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Debt Service Principal – No questions/changes.

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Elections – No questions/changes.

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Emergency Management – No questions/changes.

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Fire Department – Mr. Hall commented that the budget contained a couple of one-time expenses so when a future budget is being prepared they are cognizant those items are taken out. Mr. Farris said the Board had hear= d at the beginning of the budgetary process that there had been (+/-) in the sal= ary line throughout the budget that had been corrected for this year. Moving forward, he asked that it be monitored. Mr. Hall believed = that the Support Staff increase was a warrant article. He asked Ms. Kelley to provide the= Board with a breakdown of how it was spread out across departments.

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Health Officer – Mr. Lavallee asked if the mosquito contr= ol was outsourced. Selectman Vig= er stated it was a unique situation. There were three/four authorized licensed mosquito control people li= sted in the state (and were very regional and territorial). The Town has sent the job out to b= id, but only ever receives one back.

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Health Services – No questions/changes.

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Highway –

Repairs - $10,00= 0 for the Sterling truck – if truck is replaced (under New Equipment) the $10,000 will be removed. Mr. Sherman wanted to know if $32,= 000 would still be needed in the Repairs line if the truck was replaced. Ms. Kelley made a note to get an answer. Mr. Puddister asked i= f the proposed lease/purchase agreements for the trucks would contain escape clau= ses (agreement automatically terminates) in the event the trucks were not funded. Ms. Kelley will find out.

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Human Services – Job description was received. In 2011 the administrator worked 3= 02 hours. The hourly rate from J= anuary 1^st – November 21^st was $20/hour; from November= 22^nd – December 31^st the rate was increased to $22.00/hour.

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Insurance – Numbers will be adjusted when current informa= tion is received.

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Legal – No questions/changes.

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Library – Mr. Hall said a warrant article was expected to change the purpose of the ADA Fund. The repair of the grandfather clock would be more that what was specified in the budget; that amount will be absorbed this year.

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Park & Recreation – Information regarding the revolvi= ng fund had been provided to the Board via e-mail. Mr. Cate questioned if the parks (specifically PVMP) were tied into emergency communications. Police Chief Joseph Roark (seated = in the audience) stated there had been discussions. He said there were cellular diffic= ulties in that area. The park had a telephone line, but if it were knocked out by a branch, they would have no communication. Mr. Lavallee asked if there had been any vandalism done to t= he Town beach area during the year. Chief Roark said there had been damage to the fixtures on the outside of the bath house and life guard chair. T= here is a still photo camera at the park, however it only captures people enteri= ng from the water. There is a sy= stem of trails that enters from the shore line.= It was noted that there was a proposed development (subdivision in <= st1:City w:st=3D"on">Dracut) that may = provide access to the park thereby improving safety having another egress.

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Planning –

Salaries –= Mr. Farris saw there was a line item for CIP recording secretary and asked if it would be started up again. Selectman Viger believed the Planning Board was attempting to form a= CIP committee.

Equipment Rental= s: Mr. Lavallee asked if the Ford Focus lease was solid.&n= bsp; Selectman Viger stated that the Selectmen voted in favor of the lease. He said the price was competitive and the vehicle was economical for its purpose. Mr. Puddister noted that the cover= sheet didn’t reflect the increase in the rentals; the overall budget increase/decrease percentage was off. Ms. Kelley made note of the needed correction.

Expenses - Mr. Cate understood that the = impact fee review was a validation process and questioned why the fee wouldn’= ;t come out of the impact fees themselves.&nb= sp; Mr. Farris said the impact fees would be returned to the developer if they weren’t used for the purpose in which they were collected. Mr. Guimond stated impact fees wer= e to be used for a specific purpose. He said the review was to determine if the Town had the proper impact fees. Mr. Lavallee recalled Mr. Gaydos s= aying impact fees didn’t have to be returned. Mr. Hall believed the portion of t= he impact fee spent on design etc. didn’t have to be returned. Selectman Viger stated there was a= point at which impact fees have to be returned, the Town was not at that point yet. He said any unexpended i= mpact fees would have to be returned at a certain period if the specified project didn’t move forward. Mr. Dunne discussed his understanding of how impact fees were determined and collected. He said the impact= fee evaluation was similar to an internal audit procedure. Mr. Hall wanted to know what impac= t fees would be reviewed.

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Police – Mr. Farris asked how much use the motorcycle had. Police Chief Joseph Roark (seated in the audience) replied they used approximately 1500-2000 miles per year. He asked that the Board= not judge the motorcycle’s use over the last twelve months; the traffic O= fficer had been deployed overseas and recently returned. He said the motorcycle would be ou= t more as the Department got their staff back up and they got specialized patrols out. The motorcycle had a fiv= e year lease and a life expectancy of approximately 10-years. Mr. Lavallee asked what life milea= ge was expected before needing replacement. Chief Roark said the power train warranties were 100,000 miles.

Mr. Dunne asked = if there was any cost for getting a K-9 unit and questioned if it would come out of = the training budget. Chief Roark = said there was an expense to obtain and train a dog; funding would be partially pulled from training and overtime. T= hey had all the necessary equipment because they had a dog in the past. Mr. Dunne wanted to know the typic= al cost for a police dog. Chief = Roark said they were $5000-$6000 plus the training expense.

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Retirement – No questions/changes.

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Selectmen – Salaries - Mr. Guimond said it appeared that = the book keeper was receiving a 6%-7% raise.&n= bsp; Selectman Viger said the Town had a new book keeper. There was an agreement to start th= em off at a low rate to get them up to speed and later increase the rate to suit t= he position. Mr. Hall noted that= the department heads had employment agreements; the Selectmen had set goals and would revi= ew those goals and conduct evaluations.

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Senior Center – Mr. Lavallee understood = that fees would be charged for special breakfasts additional services. He asked where those fees were deposited. Selectman Viger be= lieved the money collected would go back into the general fund.

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Town Buildings – Mr. Lavallee asked for clarification of = the new equipment. Mr. Hall outli= ned the items that were being requested, as contained in the back up information. Under Expenses -= Mr. Dunne questioned who (Town or outside service) was conducting the inspectio= ns listed and if they were for Town buildings. Selectman Viger noted that that contracted companies certified the extinguishers, panel alarm and sprinkler system.

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Town Celebrations – Clarification regarding the flags was received.

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Town Clerk – Mr. Dunne recalled the Board requesting that= the Tax Clerk/Tax Collector’s salary increase $1749) be moved from the ‘contractual increases’ column since that position was not under contract. That number should = not be included in the default budget calculation. Mr. Guimond asked if the number for MuniSmart was the final number. Ms. Kelley replied that the number was the estimate; it was usually a 10% increase.

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Transfer Station – Mr. Farris noted (under expenses) that= the increases (prior years) had always been offset by an annual increase in rev= enue; however the estimated revenue for this year and next was capped out at approximately $70,000. The ha= uling fees were increasing approximately $14,000. He said if the trend continued the revenues wouldn’t offset the budget as favorably as in the past. Mr. Farris felt Mr. Hannon was doi= ng a great job; his comments were for informational/observational purposes, not criticism.

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Treasurer – No questions/changes. Board requested a copy of the late= st monthly report.

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Trust Funds – No questions/changes.

Mr. Hall asked f= or the total Town vacation buyback number. Ms. Kelley stated $27,455 was for support (only); the Fire Department also receives it, but it wasn’t part of the warrant article (it had b= een from a warrant article the year before).&n= bsp; Mr. Hall questioned if an employee could elect to withdraw. Selectman Viger answered yes. He noted that the amount was decre= ased when individual supervisor contracts were drafted. He said a majority of the earned t= ime was bought out from the supervisors.

DISCUSSION

Mr. Hall reviewe= d the upcoming schedule. At the next meeting the Board will vote regarding the By-Law change.

By-Laws currentl= y read:

Section VII – Procedure for Revi= ew of Budgets:

B. Capital Expenditures – Shall = meet the following criteria:

1. = A warrant article shall be any item th= at has a useful life greater than 3 years, and meets or exceeds the DOLLAR VALUE of the current state= bid price of a police cruiser

a. A replacement capital expenditure whose dollar amount exceeds the lowest current state bid price = of a police cruiser by no more than twice, may be inserted into an operational budget by a vote of the Budget Committee.

The motion on th= e floor to be addressed at the October 13, 2011 meeting regarding the By-Laws was as follows (as discu= ssed at the October 3= , 2011 meeting):

“A replacement capital expenditure may= be inserted into an operational budget by vote of the Budget Committee…”

ACTION ITEMS

Highway Department to submit a vehicle replacement schedule.
Mr. Gaydos to provide a copy of the Treasurer’s report.
Ms. Kelley to provide the Board with a co= py of the FSLA spreadsheet including what qualified.
Mr. Gleason will review to find out if all dumpsters (Town facilities) were with Allied Waste.
Mr. Gleason will find out how many old ca= rs were currently in service and if they were included in the vehicle inventory list.
Mr. Gowan to provide the Board with an updated number of building permits issued.
Mr. Gleason to provide a copy of the maintenance agreement (including the term) for the Senior Center<= /st1:PlaceType>’s new copier.
Ms. Landry (Sr. Center) will submit the number of miles for the bus.
Ms. Landry (Sr. Center) to find out the term of certification for the bus driver’s DOT card.
Ms. Kelley to provide a breakdown of how = the approved Support Staff warrant article funding was spread out between departments.
Ms. Kelley to find out if Highway Dept. w= ill need the $32,000 in the Repairs line if the new trucks are put into the budget.
Ms. Kelley to find out if the lease/purch= ase agreements for the proposed Highway Department trucks would contain an escape clause to automatically terminate if not funded.
Ms. Kelley to find out what impact fees w= ould be reviewed (under the Planning Department Expenses line).

ADJOURNMENT

MOTION:

(Viger/Guimond= )To adjourn the meeting.

VOTE:

(9-0-0) The motion carried.

The meeting was adjourned at approximately 8:50pm.

= &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = Respectfully submitted,

= &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = Charity A. Landry Willis

= &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = Recording Secretary