Since there is a good chance you did not go to Town meeting, here is the $5.00 question:
Article 3 - Fiscal 2016 Financial transfers:
Transfer $5.00 from the Board of Health Agent (salary) to Tree Warden. I looked at the tree warden account number and compared it to the number on the budget versus actual report from the Town Accountant, since there is an account for tree warden salary and expense. So I raised my hand and asked the question, is that tree warden salary or expense? Answer was it is tree warden salary so I followed with who is the tree warden/ Answer, the highway superintendent. I then inquired about the legality of a Town employee receiving two pay checks, that is when the stuff kind of hit the fan, with the selectmen and Town Accountant shuffling. Town meeting told selectmen will remove the $5.00 transfer to tree warden and combine it with a $75.00 transfer from health agent salary to highway superintendent salary which equals an $80.00 transfer. The Town meeting was told by Town Accountant the $2,500.00 tree warden salary account would be reclassified and be added to the highway superintendent salary account.
Article 3 - Fiscal 2016 Financial transfers:
Transfer $5.00 from the Board of Health Agent (salary) to Tree Warden. I looked at the tree warden account number and compared it to the number on the budget versus actual report from the Town Accountant, since there is an account for tree warden salary and expense. So I raised my hand and asked the question, is that tree warden salary or expense? Answer was it is tree warden salary so I followed with who is the tree warden/ Answer, the highway superintendent. I then inquired about the legality of a Town employee receiving two pay checks, that is when the stuff kind of hit the fan, with the selectmen and Town Accountant shuffling. Town meeting told selectmen will remove the $5.00 transfer to tree warden and combine it with a $75.00 transfer from health agent salary to highway superintendent salary which equals an $80.00 transfer. The Town meeting was told by Town Accountant the $2,500.00 tree warden salary account would be reclassified and be added to the highway superintendent salary account.
Now for the nit picking, there had originally been a Town meeting appropriation of $2,500.00 for tree warden salary at Town meeting held in May 2015 for the fiscal 2016 town budget. The highway superintendent has been getting paid from that account for a while and you can not undo that.
Selectmen Brooks may call that nit picking and other things, I call it trying to follow the law. I call it being transparent. I see the selectmen budgeting, as in asking you, to pay $66,000.00 for a Town Accountant, so what do you expect for $66,000.00 of your money?
Selectmen Brooks may call that nit picking and other things, I call it trying to follow the law. I call it being transparent. I see the selectmen budgeting, as in asking you, to pay $66,000.00 for a Town Accountant, so what do you expect for $66,000.00 of your money?
posted by Jeff Bennett
DHB too busy getting her FB friends to feel sorry for her
ReplyDeleteSelectmen did not even look at the budget or articles to see what the impact to town is or they would have see the issues seen at town meeting before they got to the meeting as you pointed out
ReplyDeleteIf the figures foe excise tax and new growth are wrong, as we on the Advisory Board think they are, then the budget Town Meeting passed is worthless. We will be broke again, as fast as you can bat an eye! John a brooks and Mike Dickson should learn to shut up and listen. Maybe they would have understood why taTAB made changes.
ReplyDeletethe budget document on the town web site is not the same one we passed at town meeting the figures are not the same in the summary. so the TA did what he wanted to or is it the selectmen?
ReplyDeleteDo you mean that it actually adds up ?
DeleteBeats me, I do not think the Selectmen had a clue, so what does that tell you ?? Of course that is my opinion.
ReplyDelete