Board of Finance Meeting Minutes-8/20/13

BOARD OF FINANCE
REGULAR MEETING - 6:00 PM
AUGUST 20, 2013

CALL TO ORDER

Mr. Paul Henault, Chairman called the Regular Meeting of the Board of Finance to order at 6:00 P.M. on Tuesday, August 20, 2013 in the Main Meeting Room of the Simsbury Town Offices located at 933 Hopmeadow Street, Simsbury, CT. The following members were also present: Barbara Petitjean, Jeff Blumenthal, Peter Askham and Nick Mason.  Also present were Mary Ann Harris, Finance Director; Burke LaClair, Board of Education Business Manager; Thomas Roy, Director of Public Works; and other interested parties.
 

1. Approve Minutes - July 16, 2013

Ms. Petitjean made a motion to approve the minutes from July 16, 2013 as presented. The motion was seconded by Mr. Mason and was unanimously approved.

2. Supplemental Interdepartmental Transfers

Mr. Henault referred to a memorandum, dated August 14, 2013 from Tom Cook, Director of Administrative Services, regarding the supplemental year-end transfers.  Ms. Harris described the background regarding the interdepartmental and intradepartmental transfers outlined within the memo.

Ms. Petitjean moved for approval of the Interdepartmental Transfer in the amount of $4,536. Mr. Askham seconded the motion which was unanimously approved with one abstention. Mr. Mason recused himself from the vote.

3. Reserve Fund Transfers

Mr. Mason moved for approval of the Reserve Fund Transfer in the amount of $5,523. Mr. Askham seconded the motion, which was unanimously approved.

4. Pension Fund

Mr. Henault provided a breakdown of the proposed additional contribution to Pension Funds and spoke about how this is a move that continues the strengthening of the Pension Funds which has been a goal of the collective Boards.

Mr. Askham made a motion for the adoption of the recommended allocation of the $200,000, as outlined within the memo from Tom Cooke, dated August 14, 2013 titled "Approval of Additional Contribution to Pension Funds".  The motion was seconded by Ms. Petitjean and was unanimously approved.

4. Department of Public Works Roads Programs

Mr. Roy, Director of Public Works presented an overview titled "Pavement Management Program Overview". The presentation was an update regarding previously requested funds and how they have been allocated.  Mr. Roy spoke about the impact of road paving and the related cost. He provided an overview of the pavement management system.  He then provided specifics regarding roadway evaluation and spoke about long-term consequences of deferring maintenance. Mr. Roy stated that the annual cost to maintain the roads on an ongoing basis is $1.2 million per year.

Mr. Roy provided a breakdown of Paving Costs and the different surface treatment options. Then he provided a history of paving costs for Simsbury as well as work completed 2010-2012.  Mr. Roy then spoke about the new technologies and strategies that will be utilized moving forward. Mr. Roy then spoke about looking to the future with regards to funding Simsbury's Paving Program and spoke specifically about the sources of the funds. Mr. Roy spoke about his goals for Simsbury's roads moving forward. The source of the funds were discussed as well as ideas on how Simsbury can level out the paving work/annual costs.  The long-term plan was discussed and it was suggested to sit down with the Board of Selectmen in order to create a 5-7 year plan.

At this point, the accounting of the outstanding FEMA approved reimbursement of approximately $100,000 was discussed.

Ms. Petitjean then reiterated the importance of sitting down with the Board of Selectmen regarding the long-term road paving plan.

5. Preliminary year-End 2013 Results

Board of Education - Burke LaClair provided the members with a handout including his most updated numbers. He then spoke about the security reimbursement grant, for which they submitted the "lock project". He said they are waiting to find out about this round of grant funding and will let the Board know about any reimbursement. Mr. LaClair provided an update on the security audit. He requested a three-board meeting to discuss the cost estimates regarding suggested security work, pursuant to the results of the audit. The student body activity variance and the new equipment variance were discussed as a result of a question posed by Mr. Mason. The technology goals and updates, and the related spending, were also discussed.

Board of Selectmen - Ms. Harris then provided the Board members with an estimated Fund Balance worksheet, as of June 30, 2013, and provided some details. Ms. Harris answered additional questions from the Board. 

6. Correspondence

Mr. Henault provided an update regarding the Pension Subcommittee that will now be named the Retirement Plan Subcommittee which will now oversee the 457 Plan and the Defined Contribution Plan.

Mr. Petitjean made a motion to amend the agenda in order to act on the topic introduced by Mr. Askham regarding the BlumShapiro memorandum on agreed-upon procedures.  The motion was seconded by Mr. Blumenthal and was unanimously approved.

Mr. Askham spoke about a pre-audit meeting and passed out a letter from BlumShapiro, titled Agreed-Upon Procedures. He provided an overview of the contents of the letter. These are items that might not have been examined on an in-depth basis by the audit and outline how Simsbury can improve on some potential weaknesses. He spoke about a mini-internal audit in order to strengthen the town with regards to these specific areas. It was noted this would have to be suggested to the Board of Selectmen to review and provide their thoughts. This idea was discussed further by the Board members, as was the related cost to this type of investigation. It was agreed that the Board members would be interested to get input from Board of Selectmen and Board of Education.  The auditing within other municipalities was discussed. Mr. LaClair spoke about the Student Activity funds in further detail.

It was the consensus of the Board to present this idea to the Board of Selectmen and get feedback.

Mr.  Blumenthal made a motion to adjourn the August 20, 2013 Board of Finance Meeting at 7:33PM. The motion was seconded by Mr. Mason and was unanimously approved. 

Respectfully submitted,

__________________       ___________________________

Paul Henault, Chairman     Leslie U. Faraci, Commissions Clerk