Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013-04-08-AC-min4/8/13 Minutes Minutes Town of Lexington Appropriation Committee April S, 2013 Place and time: Reed Room, Town Office Building, 6:30 p.m. Members present. Glenn Parker, Chair; John Bartenstein, Vice Chair and Secretary; Robert Cohen; Alan Levine; Susan McLeish; Eric Michelson; Richard Neumeier; Rob Addelson (non- voting, ex officio) Members Absent: Mollie Garberg; Jonina Schonfeld The meeting was called to order at 6:37 p.m. 1. Announcements: Ms. McLeish will provide the initial review of these minutes. Mr. Parker reviewed the status of upcoming articles at Town Meeting. 2. Fiscal Year 2014 Budget Articles: Article 23 (Appropriate for Prior Years' Unpaid Bills): Mr. Addelson reported that the motion for this article will request an appropriation of $24,540, which is less than initially anticipated; the funding will come from the Department of Public Works FY2013 expense line item. As discussed at the April 3 meeting, this is for unpaid bills for FY2010, FY2011, and FY2012 street light maintenance performed by Republic ITS. Invoicing was delayed until last fall because Republic ITS was acquired by Siemens in 2010 and its accounts receivable system was disrupted during the transition. William Hadley, Director of Public Works, has reviewed the bills and determined that the services were provided and that payment is due although the funds were not encumbered for the fiscal years when the work was completed. There was a motion to support Article 23 as described by Mr. Addelson. The motion passed. VOTE: 7 -0 Article 25 (Authorized Capital Improvements): It was reported that there will be a motion to indefinitely postpone this Article because the funding is not needed. There was a motion to support indefinite postponement of Article 25. The motion passed. VOTE: 7 -0 Article 24 (Amend FY2013 Operating and Enterprise Budgets): Mr. Addelson distributed a table showing the recommended FY2013 budget adjustments, noting they had not yet been reviewed by the Board of Selectmen. He also noted that: ✓ The request for $20,000 for the Public Celebrations Committee resulted from fund raising efforts not being as successful as anticipated. ✓ The additional funds for the Town Clerk's office, which are for unanticipated special elections, will likely be reimbursed by the State in FY2014. ✓ The need for additional funds for the MIS budget results from higher than projected costs for the electronic permitting system. 4/8/13 Minutes There was a motion to support the budget adjustments as outlined by Mr. Addelson. The motion passed. VOTE: 7 -0 Article 8m (FY2014 Community Preservation Committee Operating Budget and CPA Projects: LexHAB Set -Aside Funds for Acquisition of Community Housing): Mr. Bartenstein reported that he has put some additional thought into this Article, and wants to change his vote of support from Yes to No. He explained that LexHAB did not spend the funds appropriated last year for the annual set -aside program, and therefore this year's appropriation was proposed to be earmarked for housing to be constructed at the Leary and /or Busa sites instead. However, LexHAB has not yet identified the specifics of a project at either of those locations, which is usually necessary before the Town appropriates funds. Mr. Michelson added that originally the purpose of the set -aside was to allow LexHAB the ability to purchase land on the market, not to build on land already owned by the Town It was generally agreed that the funding requested would not be enough to complete a project at either site. Mr. Levine commented that there is no point in appropriating the money for the identified projects at this time because another appropriation will be needed. He said that he would change his Yes vote to No as well. Mr. Bartenstein said he does not want to appropriate construction funds before seeing the design plans, and he expects to present a minority report at Town Meeting. Article 18 (Post Employment Insurance Liability Fund): It was reported that Tom Diaz is planning to present an amendment to Town Meeting to reduce the appropriation request from $775,000 ($550,000 from free cash and $225,000 from the tax levy) to $465,499 (funded entirely by free cash). Until recently the Town has been paying for this liability on a "pay -as- you -go" basis. It was noted that the transition to pre- funding the OPEB obligation is difficult, but pre- funding the obligation will probably save the Town money over the long term; it also addresses intergenerational fairness. It was agreed to caucus during Town Meeting to determine the Committee's position on the amendment. 3. Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 7:32 p.m. A list of documents and other exhibits used at the meeting is attached. Respectfully submitted, Sara Arnold Recording Secretary Approved May 9, 2013 2 4/8/13 Minutes Exhibits April S, 2013 1. Meeting Agenda posted by Glenn Parker, Chair 2. Preliminary Proposal: Article 24 Budget Adjustments: Subj ect to review by the Board of Selectmen; prepared and distributed by Mr. Addelson, 4/8/3013