Fiscal 2016 Templeton Town financials might not be closed after all.

No,  I can’t officially close the FY 16 year in the software system until I have good forwarding balances.  However no other entries need to be made that I am aware of.

Kelli Pontbriand

Accountant

Town of Templeton

978-894-2765

From: Templeton, MA Advisory Board [mailto:templetonadvisoryboard@gmail.com]
Sent: Tuesday, August 23, 2016 2:46 PM
To: Kelli Pontbriand
Cc: Advisory Committee; Beverly Bartolomeo; Gordon Moore; Jeff Bennett; Julie Farrell; Katharine Fulton; Wilfred Spring
Subject: fy16 Closed out

Kelli,

Thank you for the end of year BvA.   The question we have is are the books for  FY16 closed out yet?

Thanks,

Wil

posted by Jeff Bennett

This blog is getting some publicity, via face book by selectmen  - thank you.

Perhaps someone is getting nervous with the mention of recall and selectmen in the same sentence. That is merely information and a reminder to folks that if they feel they are not getting what they expect from their selectmen, there are options and recall is one of them. It is a process that takes some effort and time but can be done.  

Remember, there are two debt exclusion items for the NRHS district currently on the books for Templeton. Tax rate increases for a certain amount of time for a specific item. The Advisory Committee has been trying to obtain that information for quite some time but the selectmen do not seem to provide that information. Please, someone copy and paste this to their face book page.


posted by Jeff Bennett                                                                            

Financial woes continue  - after the selectmen kept telling everyone that things were all good.


There is a good possibility that there will be a need for an article to pay some fiscal 2016 Town bills out of fiscal year 2017 money. 60 thousand dollars in sewer bills that might not have been paid. So if there is an article to pay for last years bills with this years funds, do not be surprised. There is always the hope that it is an error and no such boo boo was made.

However, if that is true, that would bring the number up close to the 200 thousand dollar range in sought after dollars to fix that balanced budget presented to you by the selectmen on May 14, 2016.

Face book is not personal, it is very public - deal with it.


Looking at a few face book pages of elected officials, one might be led to believe that there are "personal" and private things on face book and the web in general. It seems rather hard to fathom that in this day with all that is placed on the web, how anyone can claim or think that anything put on the web is private. If you wish no one to "see" or read or copy or put in other places, do not put it on the web, especially face book. Stop whining that someone is using stuff off my personal face book page. If it is on face book, it is very public, deal with it, especially if you are elected!

People take what I write or post on Face Book and paste it on other face book pages and I like it, because it gets the information out to even more people. Last time I checked, there is such a thing as free speech, it is not free, as someone has to pay so you may enjoy that benefit. I paid for it so I will use it. Thank you very much!


posted by Jeff Bennett

from the MMA website, which is a good place to check on what is going on that can have an effect  cites and towns in different ways.

August 19, 2016

The slump in state tax collections over the first half of 2016 made it much harder than expected to close the books on fiscal 2016 and has led to worries about fiscal 2017 just as the new budget year gets underway.
 
Fiscal 2016 finances won’t be finalized until the fall, and a first good look at fiscal 2017 will have to wait until early October, when first quarter tax collections can be analyzed.
 
Concerns about the budget have been increasing even as the state’s economy continues its strong growth, with a low unemployment rate and total employment at an all-time high. According to the July edition of MassBenchmarks, economic growth is expected to continue, although somewhat more slowly, while risks to the pace of growth are expected to increase due to the possibility of both domestic and global economic events.
 
Currently available numbers for fiscal 2016 show tax growth of only 2.2 percent over fiscal 2015, with total collections running nearly $500 million below the $25.4 billion forecast for the year. In July, Revenue Commissioner Michael Heffernan said the below-expectations finish to the year reflected the impact of volatile stock markets on the investment-related parts of the state income tax.
 
Some fiscal 2016 budget features remain in doubt, including the amount of any year-end surplus that could be added to the state’s stabilization fund and used for Community Preservation Act distributions. (Section 159 in the fiscal 2017 budget act would transfer one-half of any fiscal 2016 surplus, up to $10 million, to the Community Preservation Trust Fund for distribution.)
 
The final spending plan for fiscal 2017 approved by the Legislature on June 30 was a pared back version of earlier budget bills due to a more than $600 million reduction in tax projections compared to assumptions that were originally adopted by the governor and Legislature in January. The new lower forecast took into account the weak collections in the spring of 2016, offset in part by the expectation that a slight reduction in the personal income rate, to 5.05 percent, would not be triggered for next Jan. 1.
 
In signing the budget bill on July 8, Gov. Charlie Baker vetoed $256 million in spending to provide room in the budget to cover possible additional revenue losses. Most of the governor’s vetoes were overridden during the final formal sessions of the Legislature in late July, however, including $3.7 million that had been vetoed from the special education “circuit breaker” account and nearly $220,000 that had been trimmed from the two library aid accounts on the Cherry Sheet.
Written by MMA Legislative Director John Robertson

posted by Jeff Bennett

How things go for a Committee tasked by state law and Town by-law to advise and recommend on financial business of the Town of Templeton. What can a citizen expect if they ask for accountability of their tax dollars. Probably get a good long book and wait, wait for the sound of Silence!

What was received in these emails looks like enterprise fund debt rather than debt of the Town that is on the tax rate, big difference. The big financial team of Templeton should be capable of providing Town debt information fairly easily and quickly.


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Kelli Pontbriand <accountant@templeton1.org>
Date: Mon, Aug 15, 2016 at 7:57 AM
Subject: RE: Debt Exclusions
To: Selectman Caplis <selectmen.caplis@templeton1.org>, Diane Haley Brooks <seldhaleybrooks@templeton1.org>, Doug Morrison <SelDMorrison@templeton1.org>, Julie Richard <SelJRichard@templeton1.org>, John Columbus <SelJColumbus@templeton1.org>
Cc: "Templeton, MA Advisory Board" <templetonadvisoryboard@gmail.com>, Carter Terenzini <townadministrator@templeton1.org>, Beverly Bartolomeo <bartsfarm@comcast.net>, Gordon Moore <GordonGMoore@yahoo.com>, Jeff Bennett <jpb01468@comcast.net>, Julie Farrell <jfarrell59@gmail.com>, Katharine Fulton <fultonkate@hotmail.com>, Wilfred Spring <185wilberdr@gmail.com>

Why am I doing the Treasurers work again?   DEBT is 100% the treasurer’s job.

I will do my best to get this done today before I leave, but I can’t make any promises.  I am in the office one day this week and had my work planned out.

Kelli Pontbriand

Accountant

Town of Templeton

978-894-2765

From: Selectman Caplis [mailto:selectmen.caplis@templeton1.org]
Sent: Thursday, August 11, 2016 5:53 PM
To: Diane Haley Brooks
Cc: Templeton, MA Advisory Board; Carter Terenzini; Kelli Pontbriand
Subject: Re: Debt Exclusions

Good day all

  The accountant will assist and I know it's been a few weeks but a lot is going on just be patient we will get it done. Don't forget the account has day to day operations that need to get done throw in vacations, surgery, death in distant family, a new TA getting caught up to speed ect

 As you can see we have limited staff and all department heads have to prioritize the week and day to day operations for the BoS and the TA to track all your request is it possible to go through the BoS office this way we and the TA have visibility of the request and we can track and monitor for our end of year report.

Respectfully 

John Caplis

Sent from my iPhone

On Aug 11, 2016, at 5:31 PM, Diane Haley Brooks <seldhaleybrooks@templeton1.org> wrote:

I believe that we are in transition again with a new TA, The paperwork for the budget, audit, daily tasks, vacations and Kelli just had surgery and she is working on all the paperwork for the meetings.  

We have limited manpower as Carter has stated to the BOS and in meetings.  I am sure Kelli is working on this.  

Please can we have some patience as she works through all the challenges we have.   

My thoughts.  Thanks!! 

Diane Haley Brooks, Realtor 

Jackie Leger Real Estate

362 Elm Street

Gardner, MA 01440

Direct: 978-430-2751

Office: 978-630-3600

Fax:  855-276-1049

Visit my website!  TuesdaysInTempleton.com

On Aug 11, 2016, at 3:14 PM, Templeton, MA Advisory Board <templetonadvisoryboard@gmail.com> wrote:

Carter,

Can you see what the issue is as to why it is taking so long to get this information.

The Advisory Committee requested a list of the present towns Debt exclusions information from the Treasurer/Collector on June 27 and asked for a status on July 28 and have not heard any thing.

We would like to know the following

1. Reason for the debt  

2. List the dates they were taken out.   

3. The length in years they are taken out

4. What year will they expire

5 What the charges for FY17 budget would be as there was an increase on the FY17 budget document. 

This information will help in our review of the FY17 budget and also going forward to FY18

The DE1 does not contain all of this information

Wil

TAC Chairman

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Templeton, MA Advisory Board <templetonadvisoryboard@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, Jul 28, 2016 at 3:12 PM
Subject: Re: Debt Exclusions
To: Treasurer <treasurer@templeton1.org>
Cc: Nodrog here <GordonGMoore@yahoo.com>, Wilfred Spring <185wilberdr@gmail.com>, Kate Fulton <fultonkate@hotmail.com>, Jeff Bennett <jpb01468@comcast.net>, Beverly Bartolomeo <bartsfarm@comcast.net>, Julie Farrell <jfarrell59@gmail.com>, Selectman Caplis <Selectmen.Caplis@templeton1.org>

Kate,

Have you made any progress on the 6 debt exclusion (5 permanent and 1 Temporary) in getting the information the Advisory Committee requested last month?

Wil

On Tue, Jun 28, 2016 at 5:45 AM, Treasurer <treasurer@templeton1.org> wrote:

I’ll work on that…

Kate Myers

Town of Templeton

Treasurer/Collector

PH 978.894.2764

FAX 978.894.2790

From: Templeton, MA Advisory Board [mailto:templetonadvisoryboard@gmail.com]
Sent: Monday, June 27, 2016 4:35 PM
To: Town Treasurer
Cc: Nodrog here; Wilfred Spring; Kate Fulton; Jeff Bennett; Beverly Bartolomeo; Julie Farrell
Subject: Debt Exclusions

Kate,

The Advisory Committee would like a list of the present towns Debt exclusions.  

1. Reason for the debt  

2. List the dates they were taken out.   

3. The length in years they are taken out

4. What year will they expire

The DE1 does not contain all of this information

Thank You,

Wil Spring

Advisory Committee Chairman

No answers yet - when will they come?

From: Robert Markel [mailto:townadministrator@templeton1.org]
Sent: Friday, January 8, 2016 12:29 PM
To: Mark Barrieau; Bartolomeo, Bev; Fulton, Katharine; Greene, Michael; jpb01468; Moore, Gordon; Spring, Wil
Subject: Re: Request from Advisory Board

Mark and All-

The most recent update of the Town's debt schedule is attached.  There are two charts provided by First Southwest Bank.  

We also have a version that was done by Matt Angell which turned out to be inaccurate.  Kelli started to update and correct that document last week.  It shows interest and principal payments on all debt through 2045.  I will forward it to the TAB as soon as I have the update.  

Bob

Robert T. Markel
Interim Town Administrator
Town of Templeton
160 Patriots Road