DUBLIN BUDGET COMMITTEE
Minutes – January 31, 2006 Meeting
Present: Nancy Campbell, Charles Champagne, Judy Knapp, Rich Scheinblum - chairman, Mike Walker – selectmen’s representative, and Ken Woods
Absent: Tracey McTague
Also Present: Selectmen, Joe Cavanaugh and Anne Anable, and Bill Raymond
Meeting was called to order by Rich Scheinblum at 6:10 p.m. The January 24, 2006 minutes were accepted as written. A point of clarification was asked about Police Department Uniforms-the vests are still in that line, but the guns and flashlights are not.
Rich handed out a package with warrant articles, an expense and revenue budget, and an email about the $1 million bond for land acquisition. He announced there will be a public hearing on the Bedrock Aquifer Study, Thursday, February 2, 2006 at 7 pm at Town Hall. Rich received an e-mail from Anne Anable stating that Hollis did not do the Bedrock Aquifer study, so there was no information to get from Hollis. Rich also reported from Ed Germain that the Greenways Map is needed regardless of the Innovative Land Use ordinance passing.
Review of warrant articles:
Bedrock mapping - concerns raised were with implementation and how it works in theory with a developer or homeowner, the town’s liability in telling someone where to put a well or septic system, problems with community wells, should Dublin be the first town to do this, the cost of this program in future years, is there a level of expertise in town to implement this, the impact on taxes and affordable housing, could other zoning restrictions be enacted before we fund this program, can the entire town be done for $58,000 when a fissures map was done for a specific area of town for $22,000, can we charge developers a fee to use the bedrock map. Motion made and seconded to not recommend the bedrock aquifer study; motion passed, 5 Yes; 1 Abstention. All on the Committee agreed that
water is important and that a lot of work had been done by the Planning Board, but there were still too many unanswered questions. The Selectmen will recommend the article because the Town needs a tool to manage growth and the funds from the State and Federal government will not be available if we are not the first one.
Water Testing Program – concerns raised were the town’s liability if we should close someone’s well, is there a need for this testing if the bedrock mapping isn’t done, the cost to the individual landowner to have water tested, the testing won’t be done if there are not 100 people to do it, so therefore we should know that before the $2,000 is voted by the town and wells have to be tested before a sale and for new construction. Motion made and seconded to not recommend the water testing program. Motion passed unanimously.
Exhaust System for Highway Garage – all members present agreed this was a health issue and that money could probably be used from the remediation fund to help pay for this proposal. Motion made and seconded to recommend $13,000 for the exhaust system and to withdraw $6,000 from the remediation fund. Motion passed unanimously.
Heavy Highway Equipment- 10-Wheel Dump Truck – The proposal is to buy a Mack truck, funded via a lease/purchase. The Road Agent wants a Mack because that is what we currently own, they last 20 years or more and they don’t break down as much. If we don’t buy a truck in 2006, the price will increase by $7,000 in 2007. The town has two other bids for comparable trucks (equal motors and frames) which are $8,000-$11,000 less than the Mack. The state highway truck bid is for a single frame, a smaller motor and lighter weight trucks. Concerns expressed by the Committee were: the usability of the larger truck year round, is a lease cheaper than a bond, is lease gap insurance included in the cost per year, highway department expense budget needs to show some reductions in overtime,
contract services and part-time help. Mike felt the budget could not be reduced any further without affecting services. Motion made and seconded to recommend $36,500 for the lease purchase of a 10-wheel dump truck. This lease is for 5 years.
Further discussion: need to add revenue from the sale of the old truck, sander and plow (approximately $4,000) and we should have had all this information months ago, at the beginning of the budget process. Motion to end debate passed and Committee returned to the original motion to recommend the truck. Original motion failed 2 Yes; 4 No. Rich will ask Brian to look at the highway department expenses to see if he can make reductions in certain lines with a new larger truck. It is possible the Committee will re-consider their vote to not recommend. At this point $4,000 has to be added to the highway budget in the Contract Services (4312.4-910) line.
Transfer Station Equipment – Motion made and seconded to recommend the purchase of a bailer, a forklift and compactor for a total of $60,000, with the revenue coming from the recycling fund, with the understanding that we still need a figure for the 3 phase electricity installation. Motion passed unanimously.
Capital Reserve Funds – Motion made and seconded to recommend $113,000, allocated to the Capital Reserve Funds as follows: $25,000-Heavy Highway Equipment; $13,000-Police Cruiser; $50,000-Fire Equipment; $10,000-Town Building Maintenance; $10,000- Bridge Replacement; and $5,000-Library Major Maintenance & Repair. Discussion about investigating used fire equipment and bonding the same over a 10 year period, buying a grader vs. renting one and the need to increase capital reserve funds in anticipation of higher interest rates in the future. Motion failed, 1 Yes; 4 No; 1 Abstention.
Expendable Trust Funds – Motion made and seconded to recommend $12,000, to be allocated as follows: Cemetery Expansion- $7,000 and Remediation Fund - $5,000. Motion passed unanimously.
$1 Million Bond – Motion made and seconded to recommend the $1 million bond. This article would authorize the Selectmen to have money available for the purchase of conservation easements or open space land (following criteria in RSA 36-A) without another vote of Town Meeting. There would be 2 public hearings, the money would not be used until needed and the bond continues in perpetuity. Money from this bond could not be used for land for a Cemetery or for a municipal building. This article has to pass by a 2/3 majority.
Motion withdrawn.
Another motion made and seconded to recommend the $1 million bond. Further discussion about how the town acting quickly if a piece of property becomes available. Motion to end debate passed and returned to original motion. Motion to recommend the $1 million bond passed, 5 Yes, 1 No.
Revaluation Expendable Trust Fund – Motion made and seconded to create an expendable trust fund for revaluation and to take $12,000 from the unrestricted fund balance to fund this trust. This money will be re-paid by the unspent balance in the Revaluation line item budget. The proposed zoning articles to increase the lot sizes in the rural and mountain districts could have an effect on assessing costs in the future. Motion to end debate, passed unanimously. Motion to recommend article passed unanimously.
The following open questions in budget lines were reviewed:
Planning & Zoning:
Mapping (4191.1-393) – Motion made and seconded to fund this line at $800, which includes $425 for a greenways map. Motion passed unanimously.
Consultant-Projects (4191.1-389) – Motion made and seconded to fund this line at $1. This allows spending from this line. Motion passed.
Motion made, seconded and passed to accept the Planning Board budget of $19,109. Revenue from Planning Board (3401.104) is now $1,601 (this covers newspaper notifications).
Police Department:
Gasoline (4120.1-635) – Based on the gallons used in 2005, a motion was made and seconded to reduce this line to $7,500. Motion passed, 5 Yes; 1 No. The rest of the budget lines remain as they were amended at the 1/24/2006 meeting.
Building Inspection:
Motion made and seconded to fund the Building Inspector position at 10 hours per week (same number as in 2005). Discussion on an hourly wage vs. salary (most towns are hourly), why Dublin needs to spend approximately $18,000 for 23 houses and Hancock will spend $6,500 for 21 houses, over the last 10 years the average number of new house permits in Dublin was 4 and revenue doesn’t support the cost of a building inspector. The Selectmen reported that the Code Officer spends about 10 hours (90 percent of the time) on a house reviewing plans, on fieldwork, driveway review and basement construction. In previous years, Brian Barden would spend about 8 hours per house as Site Inspector. The motion was withdrawn. The selectmen indicated that the budget is based on 23 new
houses (revenue of $13,500) and 33 other permits ($1650). There was further discussion about hours. Ten hours per week based on the 10 hours per new house permit and 5 hours per all other permits should be more than enough time for this position. Rich’s expectation is that the town will adjust the hours down next year if the town only has 4-5 new houses. $18,000 for this position based on historical activity is not justified. Accountability is a concern.
Motion made and seconded to reduce Miscellaneous (4240.1-910) by $150. Motion passed, 5 Yes; 1 No. The Selectmen changed revenue from Building Permits (3230.101) to $15,100 and revenue from Perk Tests (3290.902) to $2,000. The rest of the budget remains as presented.
Emergency Management:
Equipment (4290.1-430) – Motion to fund this line at $1; seconded and passed. The Selectmen agreed to take out the computer.
The Emergency Management budget now totals $5,276. Rich mentioned that Monadnock Community Hospital is working on getting the towns to work together as a region.
Highway Department:
Uniforms (4312.1-615) – The vendor we contract with is the only supplier of uniforms for 5 days a week. Mike will ask Brian to verify this.
Overtime (4132.1-140) – The Committee still questions why overtime is 40% higher than 2005 with an additional employee? If a new larger truck is bought there should be some cost savings in this line. This item remains on the agenda.
Diesel (4132.9-630) Bill Raymond was unable to supply the Committee with figures for gallons used in 2005 for fuel because of the audit. The town spent $14,400 in 2005 and the budget for 2006 is $18,000. This line will remain at $18,000.
Solid Waste:
Diesel (4324.1-634) – Selectmen reported this line can be reduced by $300.
Motion made, seconded and passed to recommend $131,040.
Health Administration
Motion made and seconded to reduce by $150 the Miscellaneous (4411.1-910) line. Motion passed, 5 Yes; 1 No.
Motion made and seconded to fund the rest of the Health Administration budget as presented. Motion passed unanimously.
Next meeting is February 7, 2006 at 7 pm at Town Hall. Meeting adjourned at 10:55 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Nancy E. Campbell, Co-Secretary
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