live reporting - Doug continues

example of state unfunded mandate - wind instruments are now required to be professionally cleaned before reuse.

How has Franklin responded?

• reduce head count and cut employee benefits
• streamlined operations
• enhanced revenues
• spent cash reserves ($7.5 million)
  

Impact of current problem
forecasted deficits are structural, not directly due to the recession

FY 2010 forecast was for a deficit of 4.5 million
With other one time items, the deficit currently is $750,000

Where does this leave us?

• We depend more upon state aid than other towns
• Our property tax burden is less than other towns
• Our cash reserves are stable and at the right level

Where are we now?
Town expenses

• Franklin ranks 27th out of 31 comparable peer towns in per capita municipal spending
• Recent capital projects have minimal effect on operating budget

School expenses

• spending per pupil 22% less than state average
• net school spending rapidly approaching state minimum
• teacher compensation remains "middle of the pack"
• Schools have cut non-teacher costs sharply

Town spending
slide of comparison to the other 31 towns

School spending
slide of numbers directly from the State Dept of Education web site

Net school spending slide
the long curve is going the wrong way

Impact of capital projects on Town Budget

• Capital dollars can not be used for operational expenses
• Capital debt burden is about 2% of the total Town budget

Where we are headed
state aid grow of 3% - 8.5 million deficit
state aid flat - 12.1 million deficit
state aid declines 3% - 15.3 million deficit

What can we do about this?

• Agree on the problem
• Develop a comprehensive multi-year plan
• Improve transparency and accessibility if information

Continue to improve operational efficiency

• explore regionalization in addition to Library, recreation

Influence the legislative process

• preserve state aid
• address unfunded mandates
• pension reform

Ensure salaries remain competitive

explanation of steps and lanes on teacher side of the compensation

Increase tax revenue

• find revenue from non-Franklin resources
• assess need for override and debt exclusion - 5 year horizon
• look to soften impact for low or fixed income households

Improve transparency and accessibility of information

• assign ownership for improving the flow of info
• communicate more effectively with citizens
• preserve credibility

final thoughts
recap of previous topics

stay tuned for Q&A