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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026-07-08-AC-min.pdf 7/8/2026 AC Minutes 1 Minutes Town of Lexington Appropriation Committee (AC) July 8, 2026 Place and Time: Remote participation via a Zoom teleconferencing session that was open to the public; 7:30 p.m. Members Present: Glenn Parker, Chair; Sanjay Padaki, Vice-Chair; Alan Levine, Secretary; Anil Ahuja; John Bartenstein; Eric Michelson; Vinita Verma; Lily Yan; Members Absent: Sean Osborne; Carolyn Kosnoff, Assistant Town Manager, Finance (non-voting, ex officio) Other Attendees: Rosalyn Impink, Budget Officer; Lisah Rhodes, Capital Expenditures Committee (CEC) All votes recorded below were conducted by roll call. At 7:33 p.m. Mr. Parker called the meeting to order and took attendance by roll call. End-of-Year Transfers Ms. Impink went over the end-of-year budget adjustments that are recommended by staff (see the accompanying file for details). The recommended actions include eight interdepartmental transfers, increases in the spending limits of three revolving funds, and one transfer from the Salary Transfer Account. The use of funds set aside for the FY2027 budget to partially address the snow removal deficit was also noted. In the discussion of the transfer from “Elections Seasonable/Part-Time Wages” to “Elections Print- ing & Forms”, Ms. Impink noted that the overall cost of the June 16 special election was about $32,000. Ms. Impink reminded the Committee that the “Class and Compensation Study”, that was carried out in FY2025, reviewed the compensation of non-union municipal employees as well as members of the Lexington Municipal Employees Association (LMEA) and Lexington Municipal Managers As- sociation (LMMA) and resulted in recommended adjustments of salaries in certain cases. Due to timing, the adjustments made in response were not incorporated in the FY2026 budget, and hence, are factors that contribute to several of the recommended interdepartmental transfers. The adjust- ments were taken into account for the FY2027 budget. Ms. Impink noted that the target was to set salaries at the 75th-percentile relative to the salaries of comparable positions in a group of compara- ble communities (when available). A deficit in the FY2026 snow removal budget will be resolved by one of the interdepartmental transfers in addition to the use of the full amount of a set-aside of $400,000 for snow removal in the FY2027 budget. A shortfall in the Fire Department wages budget is being covered by the combination of an interde- partmental transfer and a transfer from the Salary Transfer Account. A motion was made to approve all of the interdepartmental transfers and the revolving fund spend- ing limit increases. The motion was seconded. The Committee voted in favor (8-0). Note that the Select Board has sole approval authority on transfers from the Salary Transfer Account. 7/8/2026 AC Minutes 2 Review June 10 Summit Mr. Parker said that some follow-up activity has been done toward giving municipal staff access to the school compensation data base. There has also been discussion of whether the School Depart- ment should adopt a compensation policy similar to the 75-percentile target policy used in the mu- nicipal “Class and Compensation Study” carried out in FY2025. Mr. Parker also asked whether anyone would like to act as a liaison to the School Committee finan- cial subcommittee. Mr. Levine agreed to ask about the meeting schedule of that subcommittee. Announcements and Liaison Reports Mr. Levine briefly reported that construction commenced on the new high school this past Monday, July 6. The work will intensify after the end of the appeal period regarding the Conservation Com- mission order of conditions. He also reported that the old Harrington School has been demolished. Mr. Levine said that he believes that a formal ground-breaking ceremony for the high school project will take place on September 15. Mr. Ahuja said that the Ad Hoc Crematory Study Committee II will present its final report in the next several months. Future Meeting Schedule Ms. Impink said that tentative dates have been set for budget summits in the fall. The first date is September 23. Mr. Parker asked whether he should schedule a committee meeting in September af- ter Labor Day but prior to the first budget summit. The sense was affirmative given that the com- mittee needs to elect officers for the current fiscal year and catch up with other ongoing issues. Minutes of Prior Meetings Minutes for the meeting of April 13, 2026, were approved by a vote of 7-0 (Mr. Padaki had left the meeting before this vote). Adjourn The meeting was adjourned at 9:04 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Alan M. Levine Approved: September 17, 2026 Exhibits ● Agenda, posted by Mr. Parker ● FY2026_All_Budget_Transfers_7.6.2026.pdf