Town Council passes FY 2017 budget

The second budget hearing for the FY 2017 fiscal year took place on Thursday, May 26. The perfunctory reading of the budget line items, department, total salary, total expenses was interrupted three times with a request to put an item "on hold".

The 'on hold' items were then discussed in some more detail in a brief conversation between the councilor with the question and the appropriate department head. In the case on Thursday, Police Chief Semarjian and Police Chief McCarragher were questioned about their submittals for the budget.

After the brief discussion, the Council approved with budget by an 8-0-1 vote. Jones abstained from voting as Franklin has a portion of the Tri-County budget as part of the overall town budget and Jones is currently employed there as a teacher. You may recall that he had left the council after he got hired into this position to avoid the 'conflict of interest' as it had not been disclosed while he was running. He left, campaigned again in 2015 and was re-elected.




My notes captured live during the meeting:

• LIve reporting: Budget Hearing #2 - May 26
• Live reporting: Town Council - Budget Hearing #2 -...

concrete sidewalks were filled in where they had been either skipped or left aside earlier in the process

   The budget document can be found here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2016/05/franklin-ma-town-council-budget-hearing.html


The video of the meeting can be found here
http://view.earthchannel.com/PlayerController.aspx?PGD=franknma&eID=363

"Incrementalism really is the way - the budget is more sustainable that way."

"After discussion on the staffing levels of local public safety departments, the Town Council voted to approve a $116.4 million operating budget for fiscal year 2017. 

The figure - a 2.5 percent increase over the $113.6 fiscal year 2016 budget - features $104.6 million to town departments and $11.8 million for the water, sewer and solid waste disposal enterprise funds. 

The council approved the budget Thursday night after the second of its two hearings on the topic. During the hearing, Police Chief Stephan Semerjian and Fire Chief Gary McCarraher discussed their department budgets of $5.1 million and $5.2 million, respectively."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20160526/franklin-town-council-approves-116m-budget

• The budget document can be found here

http://www.franklinmatters.org/2016/05/franklin-ma-town-council-budget-hearing.html

Franklin Municipal Building

Mass Senate Passes Fiscal Year 2017 Budget

The Senate voted today on a $39.558 billion budget for Fiscal Year 2017, investing in key areas related to local aid, education, children's health and safety, housing, health and human services, workforce training and economic development. The budget limits the use of one-time revenue sources and directs $211M to the state's Stabilization Fund to continue to rebuild this financial safety net, an ongoing Senate priority.

"With this budget, the Senate reinforces our commitment to education at every level and provides our children, families and communities with the tools they need to overcome adversity, adapt to economic uncertainty and remain strong," said Senator Karen E. Spilka (D-Ashland), Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. "This budget works to promote self-sufficiency among low income families, connect people with safe, stable housing, improve public health and advance our highly educated, skilled and creative workforce. I am grateful to my Senate colleagues for advancing priorities for their constituents and engaging in thoughtful debate this week. We should all be proud that this budget invests for resilience and the Commonwealth's future success, while remaining fiscally responsible and continuing to build the state's Rainy Day Fund."

"It is crucial for us as a Commonwealth to come together to build resilient communities, and that's what this budget works to do. It starts with giving children a great public education from early childhood through college," said Senate President Stan Rosenberg (D-Amherst). "This budget also strengthens our communities with increased local aid, better housing, environmental protections, and workforce training. I commend Chair Spilka for providing a path to maintain our fiscal footing while pushing for a stronger future."

"Tonight, we send forth from the Senate Chamber a budget that responds to important priorities like combatting the opioid crisis, supporting K-12 education, strengthening our councils on aging and protecting children, while at the same time maintaining fiscal discipline to reduce reliance on one-time expenditures, resist the temptation to increase taxes, and mitigate reliance on one-time revenue fixes," said Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr (R- Gloucester).

"After careful deliberation, the Senate has passed a thoughtful budget that both reflects the shared priorities of the Senate and addresses the pressing needs of our communities," said Senator Sal DiDomenico (D-Everett), Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. "I have no doubt that this budget will be far reaching in its efforts to create a strong and resilient Commonwealth through its strategic investments in some of our state's most critical services and programs. I am particularly proud of this budget's targeted investments for our children and families, many of which are consistent with the Senate's Kids First Initiative. I now look forward to working with our colleagues in the House to craft a final compromise budget that continues moving our Commonwealth forward."

"Chairwoman Spilka and the Senate Ways and Means staff have put in a tremendous amount of work during this process. With their leadership, we have come out of this debate with an even better version of the state budget despite having begun with extremely limited revenue, " said Senator Pat Jehlen (D-Somerville), Assistant Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. "This budget increases aid for crucial programs and services for residents all over the Commonwealth, addressing funding inadequacies in the arts, education, elder affairs, disability services, and programs that help the homeless community. We increased funding for the Massachusetts Cultural Council. We eliminated district determined measures from the educator evaluation system. We passed amendments that pilot home care services for the near poor and provide behavioral health services to adults over 60. And we have increased funding for both the Mass Commission for Deaf and Hard of Hearing and critical programs such as RAFT and MRVP."

The Senate's budget takes a holistic approach to early childhood education and care and elementary and secondary education, with a focus on building family and community relationships.

• $4.63B in Chapter 70 education aid, a $116.1M increase benefiting every school district, including a minimum increase of $55 per pupil and 85% effort reduction.
• $10M for salary increases to early education providers.
• $2.5M for Youth At-Risk Matching Grants to community youth organizations, including Boys & Girls Clubs and YMCAs.
• $2M for new preschool expansion grants to expand high-quality preschool programs that prepare young children for future educational success.
• $750K for the Mentoring Matching Grant program.

The Senate included landmark language to overhaul the Chapter 70 formula to fund Massachusetts school districts more fairly and adequately in the future. As recommended by the Foundation Budget Review Commission (FBRC) last year, the new formula better accounts for school districts' rising health insurance costs and the high cost of educating students with special needs, English Language Learners and low income students. The budget also establishes a taskforce to identify the most accurate way of counting low income students and requires the House, Senate and Administration to determine a schedule for funding the FBRC's recommendations.

The Senate budget also invests in children's mental health, safety and welfare in an effort to ensure all children grow up in a supportive environment.

• $223.5M for Department of Children and Families Social Workers, allowing DCF to hire an additional 100 social workers and 125 social worker technicians, moving closer to an 18:1 caseload ratio.
• $88.2M for Children's Mental Health Services, including $3.6M for the Massachusetts Child Psychiatry Access Project and $50K for an Early Childhood Mental Health Partnership.
• $12.5M for Family Resource Centers providing crucial mental health, substance abuse treatment and family support services.
• $1M for the Office of the Child Advocate and language to increase its independence to further its mission to protect the health, safety and well-being of children under the care of the Commonwealth.

In order to strengthen families, the Senate's budget invests in programs to connect individuals, families and vulnerable populations with housing and supportive services.

• $100M for the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program, allowing for 350 to 400 new rental assistance vouchers.
• $44.8M for assistance for homeless individuals.
• $13M for Residential Assistance for Families in Transition, including $500K to serve families with children under the age of 21, elders, persons with disabilities and unaccompanied youth.
• $6.2M for the Alternative Housing Voucher Program to provide nearly 200 new vouchers for low income people with disabilities and help them transition from nursing homes to independent housing.
• $2M for housing and supportive services for unaccompanied homeless youth.

The Senate's budget also makes targeted investments to support low income families and promote self-sufficiency, including an increase in the Department of Transitional Assistance clothing allowance from $200 per child to $250 per child, $2.6M for a new transportation benefit for approximately 10,000 participants in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Employment and Training Program and $18M for the Massachusetts Emergency Food Assistance Program. The budget invests $1M in a new common application portal to help families enroll in MassHealth, SNAP nutrition and other state benefits in one streamlined process.

The Senate's budget increases funding for health and human services in a range of areas to improve access to high quality health care and enhance services for individuals with disabilities, seniors and other vulnerable groups that are often under-served.

• $136.4M for substance abuse prevention and treatment, allowing for 150 new residential treatment beds and other lifesaving programs, and $2M for the Substance Abuse Services Trust Fund supporting detox, clinical stabilization, residential treatment, outpatient treatment and counseling services.
• $28.1M for Elder Protective Services to enhance efforts to investigate cases of elder abuse or neglect.
• $20.5M for wages for direct care staff of nursing homes.
• $14.1M for local Councils on Aging, increasing the formula grant to $10 per senior per year and strengthening local senior center community programming and services.
• $13.9M to fully fund Turning 22 Services for the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind and Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission, and $8M for the Department of Developmental Services Turning 22 program to help young people with disabilities transition to the adult services system.
• $1.1M for a pilot program to expand eligibility for the state's home care program to support more seniors aging in place.

The Senate's budget invests in the 351 cities and towns across the Commonwealth to strengthen local services and build healthy, safe and resilient communities.

• $1.02B for Unrestricted General Government Aid (UGGA) for municipal investments in education, public safety, roads and bridges and health care.
• $281.1M to fully fund the Special Education Circuit Breaker to reimburse school districts for high costs of educating students with disabilities at the full 75% reimbursement rate.
• $90M to mitigate the financial impact on school districts when students leave to attend charter schools.
• $84.1M for Regional Transit Authorities.
• $61M for Regional School Transportation reimbursements to offset 73% of the transportation costs of students attending regional schools.
• $15M for the Massachusetts Cultural Council to support the state's thriving creative economy.
• $8M for Shannon Grants for gang violence prevention and intervention programs.

The Senate also adopted an amendment limiting MBTA fare increases to 5% every two years to ensure Massachusetts residents have access to affordable public transportation.

Continuing the Senate's ongoing criminal justice reform efforts, the budget includes several investments and policy initiatives to improve access to justice, including $1.2M to expand the Housing Court to serve all residents across the state, $18M for civil legal aid for low income residents and $1.5M for Prisoners' Legal Services. The budget also waives probation fees for juvenile offenders and gives judges the discretion to impose probation fees for other offenders.

The budget invests in workforce training, economic development and public higher education to prepare Massachusetts students and residents to join the workforce and ensure the Commonwealth's economy continues to grow and lead.

• $521.3M for the University of Massachusetts, a $20.5M increase over FY 2016 funding, in addition to the new flexibility provided by tuition retention.
• $281.7M for the fifteen community colleges and $258.4M for the nine state universities across the Commonwealth, reflecting a combined increase of $24.4M over FY 2016 funding levels.
• $31M for the Adult Basic Education program to reduce the waitlist for adult education and connect adults with skills they need to join the workforce.
• $11.5M for wages for the Youth-At-Risk Summer Jobs program and $3.2M for School to Career Connecting Activities, a public-private partnership linking high school students with job training and mentoring opportunities.
• $4M for Workforce Competitiveness Grants for training and education for unemployed and under-employed workers.
• $3M for the Innovation Institute at the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative to foster a favorable environment for the development and growth of technology and innovation clusters across the state.
• $350K for a new public-private partnership matching grant program to establish college savings accounts for children in grades 7 through 12, encouraging low income students to pursue higher education and helping to close income and racial educational attainment gaps.

The Senate budget also includes a provision to move the state into compliance with the federal REAL ID law, allowing Massachusetts residents to access federal buildings and board airplanes after the state's waiver expires in October.

A Conference Committee will now work out the differences between the Senate budget and the version passed by the House of Representatives in April. Fiscal Year 2017 begins on July 1, 2016.

• The MA Capital Budget was released recently

http://www.mass.gov/governor/press-office/press-releases/fy2016/admin-releases-2-19-billion-fy17-capital-budget-plan.html

• For additional details on the Senate Budget FY 2017

https://malegislature.gov/Budget/FY2017/Senate

LIve reporting: Budget Hearing #2 - May 26

meeting resumes to continue the budget hearing


F. HEARINGS
– 7:10 PM Budget:FY 2017 Budget Hearing

The budget document can be found here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2016/05/franklin-ma-town-council-budget-hearing.html

Holds
210 - Police  (Vallee)
220 - Fire (Vallee)
fire expenses (Mercer)

Vallee - question on why no increase in personnel when in a survey we compared to other communities, the other towns must know something we don't know to have more people than we do

Semerjian - Any dept head would want more, you can't just add people and not be able to pay them

Vallee - you submitted for one policeman and I don't think that is adequate

Padula - rephrases question

Semerjian - if we put someone on, and don't have the fear of losing them, you could press harder. We are very fortunate in this communities. We work it the best way we can to make sure we do it within the constraints. There is a whole year to discuss this and nothing has been done since, and we're in the same situation.

Pfeffer - if you need some people, you need to come to the Council and let us work with the Town Administrator

Vallee - what is the problem with 3 ambulances?
McCarragher - We have staff for 7x24 for two not three

Vallee - how many did you request?
McCarragher - I asked to grow the budget for a period of 3-4 years so we could begin to staff the 3rd ambulance 10 hours, and then more and more. Incremental is really the way to grow the budget

Vallee - your responsibility is to do what is right

Pfeffer - How much overtime?
About 300K, but you're not going to reduce that?

Padula - does it take more time for an out of time to respond?
Absolutely,

Padula - we're doing our jobs but we want to look into this more closely

Mercer - last year you gave us some numbers
McCarragher - 1.5 per bed, up to 1.8

Mercer - have these facilities put more of a burden on the ambulance staffing
McCarragher - other communities are looking to bench mark off our numbers too

McCarragher - very few communities do use private ambulances, and it is going lower

hearing closed

J. LEGISLATION FOR ACTION
1. Resolution 16-33:Adoption of the FY 2017 Budget
Jones abstaining from vote (due to employment at Tri-County (which is part of the budget))

motion to approve FY 2017 budget of $116,417,305
via roll call, passed 8-1 (Jones abstain)

Motion to adjourn, passed

Franklin, MA: Town Council - Agenda - May 25, 2016

A. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
– April 27, 2016 and May 11, 2016

B. ANNOUNCEMENTS
– 1. This meeting is being recorded by Franklin TV and shown on Comcast channel 11 and
Verizon channel 29. This meeting may also be recorded by others.
2. FY 2017 Budget Hearings will be held tonight, Wednesday 5/25/16 and tomorrow,
Thursday 5/26/16 at 7:10 pm.

C. PROCLAMATIONS/RECOGNITIONS

D. CITIZEN COMMENTS
– Citizens are welcome to express their views for up to five minutes
on a matter that is not on the Agenda. The Council will not engage in a dialogue or comment on a
matter raised during Citizen Comments. The Town Council will give remarks appropriate
consideration and may ask the Town Administrator to review the matter.

E. APPOINTMENTS

F. HEARINGS
- 2017 Budget Hearing – 7:10 pm

G. LICENSE TRANSACTIONS
- La Cantina Winery - Farmer-Winery, Farmer’s Market License

H. PRESENTATIONS/DISCUSSIONS
- Veterans Officer

I. SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS

J. LEGISLATION FOR ACTION
1. Resolution 16-32: Compensation Plan – FY 2017 – Simple majority vote Budget Resolutions: Simple Majority
2. Resolution 16-34: Establishment of a Use of Facilities Account for FY 2017
3. Resolution 16-35: Establishment of a Fire Department Fire Rescue Training Revolving
Account for FY 2017
4. Resolution 16-36: Establishment of a Council on Aging Supportive Day Program Revolving
Account for 2017
5. Resolution 16-37: Establishment of a Council on Aging Senior Center Activities Program
Revolving Account for FY 2017
6. Resolution 16-38: Establishment of a Council on Aging Senior Center Respite Program
Revolving Account for FY 2017
7. Resolution 16-39: Adoption of Amendment to Town Council Procedures Manual
8. Zoning Bylaw Amendment 16-753: Zoning Map Changes from Single Family Residential IV
to General Residential V in an Area on or near West Central Street – 2nd Reading (Motion
to adopt Zoning Bylaw Amendment 16-753 - Roll Call 2/3 majority-6 votes)
9. Bylaw Amendment 16-759: Amendment of Service Fees: Solid Waste and Recycling – 2nd
Reading (Motion to adopt Bylaw Amendment 16-759 - Roll Call - Simple Majority )
10. Bylaw Amendment 16-760: Amendment to Water System Map – 1st Reading (Motion to
move Bylaw Amendment 16-760 to a 2nd Reading - Simple Majority)
11. Bylaw Amendment 16-761: Amendment to Sewer System Map – 1st Reading (Motion to
move Bylaw Amendment 16-761 to a 2nd Reading – Simple Majority)

K. TOWN ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT

L. OLD BUSINESS

M. NEW BUSINESS

N. COUNCIL COMMENTS

O. EXECUTIVE SESSION

P. ADJOURN

The agenda and associated documents with links from each item to the applicable document can be found here

Franklin Municipal Building

Franklin, MA: Town Council - Budget Hearing #2 - May 26, 2016

A. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

B. ANNOUNCEMENTS
– This meeting is being recorded by Franklin TV and shown on Comcast channel 11 and Verizon channel 29. This meeting may be recorded by others.

C. PROCLAMATIONS/RECOGNITIONS

D. CITIZEN COMMENTS

E. APPOINTMENTS

F. HEARINGS
– 7:10 PM Budget:FY 2017 Budget Hearing

G. LICENSE TRANSACTIONS

H. PRESENTATIONS/DISCUSSIONS

I. SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS

J. LEGISLATION FOR ACTION
1. Resolution 16-33:Adoption of the FY 2017 Budget

K. TOWN ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT

L. OLD BUSINESS

M. NEW BUSINESS

N. COUNCIL COMMENTS

O. EXECUTIVE SESSION

P. ADJOURN

Executive Summary FY 2017 Budget

While fiscal challenges remain, our resolve to overcome them is relentless. The FY 17 proposed budget will be balanced budget without a requirement to reduce full time staff, request an override or use other one time funds. Further, I am requesting we maintain the one additional Police and Fire department personnel we discussed in the recent past and add a deputy Town Treasurer Collector in preparation of the potential retirement of the Treasurer and Deputy Treasurer in 2018

We continue to face huge challenges in properly funding our Other Post Employment Benefits (OPEB) and roads. We should continue to maintain proper debt capacity in the annual operating budget to fund capital improvements.

The Town’s property tax revenue (not including debt exclusions) will increase by 2 1⁄2 % plus new growth, or about $2.305 million. Local receipts, which include the excise tax and permit and license fees, etc., will increase $310,000. This increase is due to increased motor vehicle commitments. Net State Aid (based on House budget) will decrease by $71,638. The FY 16 “net” revenue increase is estimated at $2.65 million.

Proposed FY 17 Highlights

Treasurer Collector – The budget adds another Deputy Treasurer Collector in preparation of the retirement of the Treasurer and Deputy Treasurer Collector in 2018. We will reassign one clerk to another department.

Police – No change in staffing. The Council authorized an additional officer last fall. A recent study showed that our staffing is consistent with like size communities.

Fire – The budget reflect one additional position to help with fire prevention, education and Regional Dispatch – The target date to open the new center is the fall of 2017. The building is currently under design and should be bid this fall.

Franklin Schools – The schools face rising costs of special education. They will deal with the problem for FY 17 by using one time and revolving funds. This will be an item of concern The Benjamin Franklin Classical Charter School has located new space and has been approved to add students from other communities. Their plan is relocated to Washington Street and complete the project in fall of 2017. The charter school formula results in a net decrease in our state aid.

Employee Benefits – This budget is increasing for several reasons. Pension costs increased by about 10%, OPEB is funded at $450,000 and health insurance continues to be a challenge. We have not finalized the Health insurance budget as of this date.

In compliance with Article Six, Sections 6-3-1 through 6-5-2 of the Franklin Town Charter, I am submitting the proposed FY 15 budget to the Town Council and Finance Committee.

The Agenda document for May 26

The full FY 2017 Budget

Franklin Municipal Building

MassBudget: Tuesday's Senate Ways and Means budget explained ...

Analyzing the Senate Ways and Means budget proposal

MassBudget    Information.    Participation.  Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center    Democracy. Analyzing the Senate Ways and Means Budget Proposal In making its budget proposal on Tuesday, the Senate Ways and Means Committee identified a long term goal: "investments to build resilient children, families, and communities." That theme can be seen clearly in many of the budget recommendations, but the lack of revenue with which to make such investments means that the actual progress towards those goals in this budget is very modest. MassBudget's new Budget Monitor examines the Senate Ways and Means recommendations in specific areas across the budget.  We provide comparisons to proposals from the Governor and the House and the context of historic spending levels. Among the highlights: Increased funding for Chapter 70 state aid for local schools and for public higher education. The SWM committee recommends significantly more than the Governor and House proposed in those areas, but it also introduces a new cut: reducing kindergarten grants by almost 90 percent. Several reforms to improve the coordination and delivery of services in several areas, including a shared application "portal" for MassHealth, child care support, and SNAP benefits, which could simplify the application process for families and streamline the administrative process for the state. The proposal largely follows the Governor's and House's proposals by relying on temporary revenue and savings to balance the budget, though less than in recent years. It is troubling that this far into an economic recovery the state continues to balance the budget with temporary solutions and remains unable to deposit into the stabilization fund the full amount called for by existing law. To read the new Budget Monitor, click (here). The Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center (MassBudget) produces policy research, analysis, and data-driven recommendations focused on improving the lives of low- and middle-income children and adults, strengthening our state's economy, and enhancing the quality of life in Massachusetts. MASSACHUSETTS BUDGET AND POLICY CENTER 15 COURT SQUARE, SUITE 700 BOSTON, MA 02108

Sent by nberger@massbudget.org in collaboration with Try it free today

MassBudget screen grab 

"Our revenues are pretty much constrained to tax increases"

Local officials released a $116 million fiscal year 2017 budget proposal this week - a measure the Town Council will deliberate upon later this month. 

The $116,417,305 total operating budget would represent about a 2.5 percent increase over the $113,608,899 fiscal year 2016 budget. Town Administrator Jeffrey Nutting said the budget essentially provides level services without reducing staff or seeking an override. 

"I am asking the council to increase firefighter staffing by one," he said. "I'm also asking for a deputy treasurer/collector in advance of retirements."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20160510/franklin-releases-budget-proposal

The full budget document can be found here  http://franklin.ma.us/Pages/FranklinMA_News/023DBE49-000F8513

Franklin Municipal Building

Real Time Reporting - Finance Committee 05/03/16

Catching up to post the reporting I managed to do during the first hour of the Finance Committee budget hearing on Tuesday, May 3. This should have been the last in the series for fiscal year 2017 (FY 2017). I'll need to catch the video when available for replay to confirm.

The budget will soon appear on the Town Council for their two day budget hearing and then vote. Unless things change, you'll find out more about each department in these FinCom budget hearings than you do when the Town Council gets involved. 

I'll update the posted links to include the video replays for the three that were broadcast. I did provide an audio recording for the one that wasn't broadcast by Franklin TV.

• The agenda for the Budget Hearing on May 3 was revised to include the Town Clerk's office http://town.franklin.ma.us/Pages/FranklinMA_FinanceAgendas/Agenda%202016-5-3

(be sure to scroll within the Storify widget to review all the entries)

all nine members were present for the final in the series of budget hearings for FY 2017

Live reporting: Finance Committee - April 28, 2016

Present: Smith, Conley, Dowd, Dufour, Bertone, Moses
Absent: Dewsnap, Fleming, Huempfner

motion to approve minutes of 2 prior meetings, second, passed 6-0

• Health Dept 510 Page E-1

David McKearney, Health Director
Public Health Services 525 Page E-7
flat budget
every year a request is made for a stipend but it is not approved
2 full time, 2 part time personnel

• COA 541 Page E-8  (Senior Center)

Karen Alves, Director
tremendous amount of support helps to provide expense coverage for the Senior Center that is not provided by the budget
50/50 split between town and state grant for health coordinator
attempting to move to self sustaining to support via fees and other grants
approx $50K in grants, Friends provide cook and support the cafe in addition to other support (approx. $20-25K)
15-20% come from out of town
the cafe is a big draw for breakfast and lunch

• Library 610 Page F-1

Felicia Oti, Director of the Library
status quo budget for this year, increase in staff anticipated but not for this year
should provide for when the library re-opens in the renovated location
a few days from opening in the temporary location
not in the center of town but large enough to accommodate the needs
moved the children, young adults and all the audio-visual materials
as well as all adult items purchased from 2013 to the present
about 55,000 pieces moved to the new location
thanks to Steve Sherlock for taking the pictures and sharing the info on the move (Franklin Matters)
thanks to the Facility Director for getting a company that knows how to move the Library
thanks to Judy Pfeffer, Chair of the Building Committee for her help and guidance
library hours will retain the normal hours
looking to coordinate with Dean College to run some events downtown
all the money for the move to/from for the temporary location is in the building fund budget
approx. 1/3 of the libraries in the state apply for a waiver
if we add staff in 2018, we can close the gap a little more, consider though that the bar is raising every year
number of Sunday's opened increased accounting for the OT budget line increase

• Fire 210 Page B-220

Gary McCarragher, Chief
Paul Sharpe, Deputy Fire Chief

mission to "Have a positive impact in the lives of citizens and visitors of Franklin in their time of crisis by providing compassionate, contemporary, community driven services. "

3800 calls last year, on pace to meet or exceed that this year
multiple simultaneous calls are the issue to continue to watch
2 or 3 times a day, I am out of resources
160+ mutual aid resource calls are used in those instances
the response time is critical to providing the best service

900 staff hours of training, thus far this year approx. 700 hours
attempting to do on duty, but it becomes increasingly difficult with the volume

avg daily staffing 9.8, ideally would be 10

response reliability 80% down from 88%, chasing to full staff
looking to achieve the 48 positions and then should start turning the numbers around

CPR instruction to be provided to community as well as to the business environment in the near future

completed all the elements to be a 'storm ready' community; have 40+ certifications in their queue and we are one of them but expecting to be certified as some time

more need for resources than resources available; without additional folks won't be able to reduce the mutual aid assistance call

creating a career ladder working with the union, the first time in a long time we have a collective bargaining agreement

everybody is pitching in to make things better
everybody will retire out and we'll lose the corporate memory

60% of the retirees have retired on a disability pension; need to address this. Attempting to do so with a health and wellness program (via grants)

one administrative position is being asked for in this budget
had been using paramedics to do the paperwork on a part time basis but it realistically can't be done that way

enhanced training cost, more training regulations than before, have a good model packaged in a way to make sense

• Regional Dispatch 225 Page B-51

Things can get better when this comes online

There are two collective bargaining agreement settlements incorporated in this budget to account for most of the increase

we respond to about 100 outbound assistance calls; that could be an issue eventually 

once the four communities are up an running with regional dispatch, we'd like to grow it

the benchmark is 90% at 10 minutes or less, currently we are about 83%

to address the mutual aid calls, we'd need to staff a 3rd ambulance but that is 10 people and a lot of money (which we do not have nor can afford)

if this gets passed, this will be the highest staffing level since 2007 (about 10 years)

3 in the academy currently
we can invite 20-30 people to ensure we get a good choice

would like to see a more diverse work force but haven't be able to do so

• Historical Commission 691 Page F-11

Mary Olsson, Chair of the Commission
only change is to add a summer intern to help further efforts in cataloging the collection

we are in the process of residing the building, all being with in-house staffing
part of a three year plan, will need to get equipment to do the tower

decrease in collection preservation is a result of stocking up to save in a future year

• Human Resources 152 Page A-28

Stephanie
Sandy
we are a staff department that serves all the departments and all employees and retirees
I will be leaving at the end of the next year and it is important to ensure a smooth transition
staffing needs is an important part of what we do, advertise, post, interview, part of the selection process
civil service vs non-civil service are two totally different processes
we have good folks working here, and we want to keep that
over the next several years we are losing a number of retirees and we need to be prepared for that
approx. 1800 insured folks all together

used the central fund to hold the anticipate bargaining settlement accounts, when the agreements are reached, the money is transferred out to the individual departments

• Employee Benefits 910 Page G-10 
• Liability Insurance 945 Page G-20

Stephanie
Don't know the health insurance amount at this point, that could change 50-60,000

• Memorial Day 692 Page F-13

flag coverage, to buy 

• Cultural Council 695 Page F-14

matching money from state to help fund that


next FinCom meeting May 3

May 25, 26 for Town Council budget hearings
may need a FinCom meeting to weigh in on the changes for the refinanciing

motion to adjourn

Finance Committee - Budget Hearing #2 - Apr 21, 2016 (audio)

My notes via Twitter from the Finance Committee meeting held on Thursday April 21, 2016. This was the second of the four planned budget hearings.

The next two scheduled budget hearings 

• Thursday April 28
• Tuesday May 3

Kevin Doyle, Assessor, ready to discuss the FY 2017 budget requirements for his department

(be sure to scroll within the Storify widget to review all the entries)

The audio recording of the 2nd budget hearing of the Franklin Finance Committee. This is one of the series preparing the budget for the Fiscal Year 2017.

FM #121

This internet radio show or podcast is number 121 in the series for Franklin Matters. This captured the audio recording of the 2nd budget hearing for the Fiscal Year 2017 held by the Franklin Finance Committee. The meeting was held in the 3rd floor training room at the Municipal Building and hence not available for regular broadcast by Franklin TV.

My notes from the meeting have been posted to the Franklin Matters webpage. The meeting agenda is also available. The budget book itself is not available. A limited number of copies were made. We’ll get budget summary as the Town Council opens their budget hearing either later in May or in June.

For those not familiar with the budget cycle. Each department makes a proposal to the Town Administrator. He reviews and potentially makes adjustments. This is what is reviewed by the Finance Committee. This group will approve a budget and it will be reviewed by the Town COuncil before being voted on to become effective July 2016.

For Franklin, the fiscal year runs July 1 2016  to June 30 2017. The FY is referred to be the ending period so this is the FY 2017 budget for next year, we are already operating on and close to finishing the FY 2016 budget.

Without further ado, here is the recording of the meeting

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This brings to the program to a close.

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This podcast is my public service effort for Franklin but I can't do it alone. I can use your help.

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For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/

If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com

The music for the intro and exit was provided by Michael Clark and the group "East of Shirley". The piece is titled "Ernesto, manana"  c. Michael Clark & Tintype Tunes, 2008 and used with their permission

I hope you enjoy!