2005-02-16-AC-min - Laserfiche WebLink

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Minutes Town of Lexington Appropriation Committee February 16, 2005 Attendees: A. Levine (Chair), P. Hamburger, R. Pawliczek, D. Brown (Vice Chair), J. Bartenstein, D. Kanter, E. Michelson, Michael Young (Town Budget Officer) Material Distributed: #1. Agenda #2. Budget exception report from Michael Young/John Ryan #3. Free cash memo from Michael Young #4. Draft minutes of January 6, 2005 #5. Draft minutes of January 27, 2005 #6. Revised financial projections FYs 2006-2008 (PH) #7. Revised list of capital item requests with notes (DK, CEC) The meeting was called to order at 7:45 PM by Al Levine in Town Office Bldg Rm 111. 1. School building update: DB delivered message from Tom Griffiths of the School Committee re anticipated Fiske overage. Amount not yet known. 2. Budget exception report: Michael Young reviewed this with committee. Much better level of detail than previous exception report. There will be some reimbursement from the State for snow removal related to the blizzard. 3. Budget Collaboration Group meeting follow-up: RP reported. Following the last BCG meeting, School Committee met. Some members wanted to immediately identify potential budget cuts, but others wanted to wait to see if additional revenues materialize. Interim Superintendent reluctant to identify cuts until he has to because of morale problems associated with identifying positions at risk. 4. Free cash: a. Reviewed Michael Young's memo re source of free cash increase. We'll get more detail on expense reversions ($362,939) when the audit is finished. MY was questioned about liabilities for overlay and there was some concern regarding the explanation for item 4-b of the memo. MY will pursue and report back. b. General discussion ensued regarding what ways exist, if any, to guarantee an increase in free cash at year's end. MY: by increasing reserves. PH/AL: a shell game, to the extent you adjust revenue estimates to make the appropriation to reserves. Appears there is very little we can predict or have control over except changes in undesignated fund balance - expense reversions - through aggressive closeouts of accounts by staff. PH commented that staff will need to manage this aggressively at end of this year. 5. Cash capital: Original calculation for FY06 pro forma based upon 5% of FY06 General Fund revenues, but MY agrees that he remembers in past years basing this on prior year's General Fund revenues. JB: Problem of using upcoming budget year figure when an override is planned - do you have two estimates for cash capital, one with and one without an override? 6. Exempt debt: