Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutFY11 Fin Com Warrant Article Write-ups-APPROVED _2_ Write-ups-APPROVED Version 2 Changes from Version 1 are highlighted in Yellow (ARTICLES CC AND JJ Added) A new section at the bottom of this document has been added to carry forward boilerplate explanations for their corresponding yearly articles. ARTICLE L: FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION: This article seeks to transfer unexpended bond proceeds from previous Capital Improvement Projects to new projects. By applying unexpended funds to new projects,the amount required to be raised for these new projects will be reduced. Since these funds were already bonded, certain restrictions apply to the towns ability to transfer these funds. The new use must be similar to the original bond intention and with a similar useful lifetime. ARTICLE P FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION: This Article seeks to transfer available funds to the Osgood Enterprise Account to offset an accumulated operating deficit,thus eliminating the need to carry those deficits into FY 2011. ARTICLE S FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION: The Community Preservation Act (CPA) addresses community issues such as acquisition and preservation of open space, creation and support of affordable housing, acquisition and preservation of historic buildings and landscapes, and creation and support of recreational opportunities. The CPA was adopted at a Special Town Meeting in January 2001, and by the voters at the following Town Election in March of the same year. As adopted, it levies a 3% surcharge on property taxes with two exemptions: $100,000 of the value of every residential property, and a complete exemption on property owned and occupied by people who qualify for low-income housing or low- or moderate-income senior housing. State matching funds are disbursed each October for the preceding fiscal year. The CPA was required to remain in effect for at least five years, an obligation that was met from FY'02 to FY'06. Surtaxes must continue until all debt has been retired. The process for revoking or reducing the surcharge is the same as that used for adoption (Town Meeting followed by Ballot Election). The Community Preservation Committee (CPC) annually recommends how funds should be spent or set aside for future spending among the allowable categories of a) open space; b) historic preservation; c) affordable housing; and d) land for recreational use, with a minimum of 10% required in each of the first three categories. In addition, a maximum of 5% may be spent on administrative expenses by the CPC. Town Meeting may either approve or reduce the recommended expenditures,but cannot add to them. North Andover received matching funds equal to $489,834 or 34.8% in FY10 from the Commonwealth. The State anticipates that the match will be 28% in FY11 due to more communities participating and lower registry of deeds surcharges. North Andover's 3% surcharge level entitles it to second and third round funding, which could increase its match above 35% if funding permits. ARTICLE (V) FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION This Article seeks to amend the R-2 (Residential-2)zoning district by-law by allowing within the R-2 District, Professional Offices provided that the lot contains 50 acres or more, is owned by the Town, and the offices constructed must be located within an existing building on the site. ARTICLE CC FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION Following good faith negotiations between the Board of Selectmen (and Town Manager) and the Fire Department collective bargaining unit, an impasse was reached whereby the parties could not agree on a new three-year contract. Massachusetts state laws provide specific procedures when such an impasse occurs. After several steps,the matter was turned over to the Joint Labor Management Committee (JLMC) for binding arbitration under rules adopted in Chapter 589 of the Acts of 1987. These laws give the Joint Labor-Management Committee (JLMC) the power to resolve collective bargaining impasses through interest arbitration awards. Under Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 150e, section 7(b),the funding of collective bargaining agreements, including those specified through binding arbitration must be brought forth to Town Meeting for approval. If town meeting turns down the funding,then the arbiter's award is no longer binding and the matter is returned to the parties for further bargaining (as specified in Chapter 589). This article seeks to obtain Town Meeting approval to fund the new contracts as specified by the binding arbitration award. Although all the parties involved in the bargaining are obligated by law to recommend approval of the arbitrator's award, no such obligation is imposed on Town Meeting or the Finance Committee. Article DD -Adopt Chapter 479 of the Acts of 2008 FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION: This article seeks to create a special fund to allow the Town to directly save toward the funding of currently unfunded healthcare and other post employment liabilities. Benefits granted to Town employees in current and prior years have not been fully funded according to their predicted future liability. Town meeting can allocate funds and interest on those funds to accrue for these liabilities. Additions to this fund would come from the Town's general fund revenues. ARTICLE EE: FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION The May 1988 North Andover Town Meeting authorized the Town to create an Affordable Housing Trust along with a set of bylaws (Chapter 28).These Affordable Housing bylaws spell out the decision-making process for the Trust; for example,how Trustees are appointed and the approval process for transferring Trust funds. "The purpose of this Trust shall be to provide for the preservation and creation of affordable housing in the Town of North Andover for the benefit of low and moderate income households. In furtherance of this purpose,the Trustees are authorized, in accordance with the bylaws,to acquire by gift, purchase or otherwise real estate and personal property,both tangible and intangible, of every sort and description; to use such property,both real and personal, in such manner as the Trustees shall deem most appropriate to carry out such purpose, provided however, that all property held by the Trust and the net earnings thereof shall be used exclusively for the preservation, creation, and use in the Town of North Andover of affordable housing for the purposes for which this Trust was formed." The current bylaws (Chapter 28, section 5c), require that prior to the trust selling any real property it must gain the approval of both the Board of Selectmen and Town Meeting. The proposed amendment to the bylaws would eliminate the requirement that Town Meeting approves the sale. Article GG- To Require televising of Finance Committee Meetings FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION: Finance Committee meetings are required to be, and have always been, open to the public, are posted, and minutes posted in accordance to the open meeting law. This article seeks to require that all Finance Committee meetings be televised. Article JJ - Instructional Motion to the North Andover Finance Committee and Board of Selectmen FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION: Approval of this article,would cause a separate warrant article to appear,when new contracts have been signed (about once every 3 years), asking Town Meeting to approve funding of collective bargaining agreements. This would include: 1- A summary of the cost items contained within the contract. 2- Consideration and recommendation by the Finance Committee. 3- Deliberation by Town Meeting. 4- Town Meeting vote to approve or disapprove the funding. Note: Town Meeting's sole authority is to approve or disapprove the funding of the total cost items contained within the contract. The details and individual cost items of the contract are negotiated by the Selectmen, Town Manager and bargaining units in executive session. Also, Chapter 150E of the Massachusetts General Laws exempts contracts approved by the School Committee the provisions of this statute. Therefore,this article would only apply to municipal contracts managed by the Town Manager. Article MM General Fund Appropriation for Fiscal Year 2011 FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION: This article is the fiscal year 2011 appropriation of funds for the Town of North Andover. Rather than being asked to vote on each line item, Town Meeting is being asked to vote on various sub-totals (bolded lines in the above schedule) reflecting the overall budget for each town department. By approving sub-totals, rather than individual line items, the town manager will have spending flexibility within those budget categories so long as the Town Manager does not exceed the sub-total. A majority of Town Meeting has the right to vote on individual line items (or in fact, further subdivide them) if so desired (although this would limit the town manager's budget flexibility). Various line items within the budget may contain the first year expenses of three- year collective bargaining agreements. If the budget as presented is approved, and it includes the first year of such agreement, then the entire three year agreement is also deemed approved. Commonwealth General Laws require that the Education budget be voted on as a single line item, including collective bargaining agreements approved by the School Board. Boilerplate explanations carried forward with little or no modification from one year to the next: Highlighted in Yellow are updated to reflect the current year. ARTICLE F FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION: In 2006, Annual Town Meeting passed a Citizen's Petition to remove health insurance benefits for elected officials, at a substantial saving to the town. The 2007 Annual Town Meeting voted an increase in the salary and compensation of elected officials. This article seeks to maintain the current level of salary and compensation of elected officials. ARTICLE G FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION: This article seeks to transfer monies from accounts with surpluses to accounts with deficits for FY2010. This action moves monies to accounts that are now known to require funds and reduces or eliminates the need to carry deficits into the FY2011 budget. ARTICLE K FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION: Any prior year bills brought forward before Town Meeting will be included in this article. Typically, the current year's budget provides the money to pay such past bills. This type of Article has a special voting requirement of 4/5th at an Annual Town Meeting. ARTICLE [AS YET UNNAMED TO TRANSFER FUNDS TO STABILIZATION FUND] FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION: The article seeks to move funds into the Town's savings account, called a Stabilization Fund. This is a fund designed to accumulate amounts for capital and other future spending purposes, although it may be appropriated for any lawful purpose (MGL Ch. 40 §513). Communities may establish one or more stabilization funds for different purposes and may appropriate into them in any year an amount not to exceed ten percent of the prior year's tax levy (In North Andover's case that limit would be $5.8MM in FYI 1). Any interest shall be added to and become a part of the funds. A two-thirds vote of town meeting is required to establish, amend the purpose of, or appropriate money from the stabilization fund. ARTICLE N FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION: The purpose of this article is to fund the Water Enterprise Fund. This fund is supported by water usage charges. The water rate is set by the Board of Selectmen and is established based on the total expenses of the department, including debt service, direct and indirect expenses, and the consumption of water by the users. Indirect costs are associated with the Division of Public Works supervision, General Government costs, and fringe benefits that are related to the operation of the enterprise and are expensed through the General Fund Appropriation. Water Enterprise capital improvement funding is included in the Town's Capital Improvement Plan. ARTICLE O No Write-up ARTICLE Q FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION: A Capital improvement is a major, non-routine expenditure for new construction, major equipment purchase, or improvement to existing buildings, facilities, land, or infrastructure, with an estimated useful life of five years or more, and a cost of$25,000 or more. Department Supervisors submit a list of capital improvement requests to the Town Manager in order of priority. The Town Manager applies a criteria formula to all items. The formula combines and prioritizes requests from all departments. The Town Manager then recommends which items should be implemented in the current year. The Selectmen then revise, if desired, and approve the plan. The Finance Committee does the same. There is a possibility that recommendations or amounts on this page may change before Town Meeting as additional information becomes available. If necessary, an update will be handed out at Town Meeting. ARTICLE R FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION: This article authorizes the revolving funds shown above for certain Town departments under Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 44, Section 53E 1/2 for the Fiscal Year beginning July 1, 2010 and ending June 30, 2011. ARTICLE T FINANCE COMMITTEE EXPLANATION: The law referred to provides in substantial part the following: Chapter 59: Section 5K. Property tax liability reduced in exchange for volunteer services; persons over age 60 Section 5K. In any city or town which accepts the provisions of this section, the board of selectmen of a town ... may establish a program to allow persons over the age of 60 to volunteer to provide services to such city or town. In exchange for such volunteer services, the city or town shall reduce the real property tax obligations of such person over the age of 60 on his tax bills and any reduction so provided shall be in addition to any exemption or abatement to which any such person is otherwise entitled and no such person shall receive a rate of, or be credited with, more than the current minimum wage of the commonwealth per hour for services provided pursuant to such reduction nor shall the reduction of the real property tax bill exceed $750 in a given tax year. ... Such cities and towns shall have the power to create local rules and procedures for implementing this section in any way consistent with the intent of this section. At last year's Town Meeting, the spending limit under this program was increased from $13,000 to $18,000. This total increased the number of seniors who could participate from 16 to 24 seniors (assuming all participants earned the maximum of $750). This Article seeks to continue the funding limit approved at last year's Town Meeting of $18,000. Participants are selected by lottery if more than 20 apply. The program administrators may also choose to support more seniors at less than $750 each at their discretion. The funds that implement this Article come from the Overlay and not directly from the General Fund, although over time it has the same effect since all money left over in the Overlay is eventually returned to the General Fund as surplus.