2018-10-22 Summit-min - Laserfiche WebLink

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Page 1 of 7 Financial Summit Meeting I Board of Selectmen, School Committee, Appropriation Committee and Capital Expenditures Committee Monday, October 22, 2018 A Financial Summit meeting was held on Monday, October 22, 2018 at 7:02 p.m. at the Hadley Public Services Building Cafeteria, 201 Bedford Street. Present for the Board of Selectmen (BOS) were Ms. Barry (Chair); Mr. Pato; Ms. Ciccolo (late arrival); Mr. Lucente; Ms. Hai; Mr. Malloy, Town Manager; Ms. Axtell, Assistant Town Manager; Ms. Kosnoff, Assistant Town Manager for Finance; Ms. Hewitt; Budget Officer; and Ms. Siebert, Recording Secretary. Present for the School Committee (SC) were Ms. Jay (Chair); Ms. Colburn; Mr. Alessandrini; Ms. Lenihan; Ms. Sawhney; Dr. Hackett, Superintendent of Schools; and Mr. Rowe, Assistant Superintendent of Schools for Finance and Operations. Present for the Appropriation Committee (AC) were Mr. Bartenstein (Chair); Mr. Levine; Mr. Michelson; Mr. Padaki; Ms. Yan; Mr. Neumeier; Ms. Basch; Mr. Nichols; Mr. Parker. Present for the Capital Expenditures Committee (CEC) were Mr. Kanter, (Vice Chair); Ms. Beebee; Ms. Manz; and Mr. Smith. Review of Financial Indicators Using a series of recognized metrics, including those from the International City/County Management Association (ICMA), the Government Finance Officers' Association (GFOA), and Moody's Investor's Service, plus data from the Town of Lexington, the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, and the U.S. Census Bureau, Ms. Kosnoff presented a preliminary FY2020 snapshot of the Town's fiscal position. Highlighted Financial Indicators from the presentation included: Indicator 1: Revenues. Favorable. Ms. Kosnoff stated that, over all, revenues (tax levy, State aid, local receipts) continue to be strong and trending upward, with a 3.22% FY2018 increase over FY2017. The total percentage has decreased slightly in constant dollars, but it is still above the 10-year average. Indicator 6: Expenditures Per Department. Marginal. This a downgrade ranking from last year's Favorable rating. Departmental expenses have been increasing faster than revenues and Ms. Kosnoff said there has been a consistent uptick over the last three years with a 4.3% increase in FY2018 over FY2017. This trend is expected to continue, largely due to increasing debt service. A close eye will be kept on this indicator. Indicator 8: Employee Benefits. Favorable. Mr. Malloy pointed out that Lexington is close to fully-funding its Pension Liability, a milestone expected to be reached in 2024. If Lexington participated in Social Security/FICA instead of in the municipal retirement system, the Town would have paid $1.35M more in FY2018.