Committee Report - Finance - 6-10-19 — File 208493

Finance Committee Page 1 of 3 Printed 6/27/2019 June 10, 2019 REPORT OF THE FINANCE COMMITTEE MEETING AS A COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE Attendee Name Title Status Arrived William A. White Jr. Chair Present Mary Jo Rossetti Vice Chair Present Matthew McLaughlin Ward One City Councilor Present Ben Ewen-Campen Ward Three City Councilor Present Katjana Ballantyne Ward Seven City Councilor Present Jefferson Thomas ("J.T.") Scott Ward Two City Councilor Present Jesse Clingan Ward Four City Councilor Present Mark Niedergang Ward Five City Councilor Absent Lance L. Davis Ward Six City Councilor Present Stephanie Hirsch City Councilor At Large Present Wilfred N. Mbah City Councilor at Large Present Others present: Ed Bean - Finance, Michael Mastrobuoni - SomerStat, Candace Cooper - Personnel, Angela Allen - Purchasing, Frank Golden - Assessing, Annie Connor - Legislative Liaison, Kristen Stelljes - CPA, Kate Hartke - Grants, Frank Wright - Law, David Goodrich - IT, Linda Dubuque - Treasury, Rositha Durham - Clerk of Committees The meeting took place in the City Council Chamber and was called to order at 6:10 p.m. by Chairman White and adjourned at 11:00 p.m. FY-20 Departmental Budget Review and any associated departmental financial matters. Community Preservation Act Ms. Stelljes made a presentation and distributed the City of Somerville Community Preservation Act FY19 Annual Report. Councilor Scott inquired about the $312,000 encumbrance and the duration of the West Library Branch project. Councilor Scott also inquired about the $2.5M bond and Ms. Stelljes stated they will skip short term BAN and go to long term debt to lock in lower interest rates. Councilor-at-large Rossetti asked about the state match for FY20. Councilor-at-large Rossetti inquired about the revenue increase for FY20 and the tax payers' portion. She also inquired about the new manager’s salary that is an increase from the current manager’s salary ($69,225 to $72,600) when the new manager has not been hired yet. Auditing

Finance Committee Page 2 of 3 Printed 6/27/2019 Mr. Bean reviewed the department’s proposed budget along with the city’s capital investment plan and debt service projects. The Chairman White asked about the interest rate and selling bonds to help pay off some debt. Councilor Ballantyne inquired about the debt and if it would be shifted to tax payers causing a higher tax bill. Mr. Bean will put this information on the city’s website. Councilor Ballantyne asked which departments have the largest invoices. Additionally, she asked for the free cash balance for June 30, 2019. Councilor Scott inquired if Powers & Sullivan CPA is a time and materials quote or flat fee on line 530009. He also inquired about personnel listing vacancies, title changes and staffing changes. Treasury Ms. Dubuque reviewed the department’s accomplishments for FY19 and presented her proposed budget for FY20. There are currently two vacancies: full time clerk and part time customer service representative. Councilor-at-large Rossetti inquired about the overtime increase. Questions were asked about line 530000 and reviewing the RFP. Ms. Dubuque offered to reduce line 530012 by $5,000 but Councilor-at-large Rossetti may suggest further reductions on that line. Purchasing Ms. Allen introduced her staff, reviewed FY19 accomplishments and the department's FY20 proposed budget. Councilor Ewen-Campen stated that less than 1% of contracts are going to MBE/WBE. Councilor Clingan inquired about the online sealed bidding process. Grants Development Ms. Hartke reported that the Grants Department was responsible for securing $4.5 million in grants for the city in FY19. She expects to bring in grants in the amount of $4.5-5M in FY20. Assessing Mr. Golden reviewed the department’s proposed budget. He noted the growth in the city as 53% residential and 47% commercial. New growth in FY20 will primarily come from Cambridge Crossing and Assembly Row with 61% commercial, 39% residential of which 7.9 (441) will be new condos. Councilor Ballantyne asked for the percent of commercial and resident actual revenue value that contributes to the operating budget. Chairman White asked for similar information on growth analysis for prior years new growth. Additionally, the chairman asked for the percent of completion for Cambridge Crossing. Personnel Ms. Cooper reviewed her proposed budget and offered reductions in various lines. Questions were asked about the living wage change which will be increased July 1 to $15.00 per hour. Questions were also asked about the dollars spent in FY19 for advertising vs. the amount suggested for FY20. Information Technology Mr. Goodrich, acting director, reviewed the IT budget. Councilor-at-large Rossetti suggested Mr. Goodrich collaborate with the Treasury Office to avoid duplicating funding requests relating to MUNIS. Councilor-at-large Rossetti asked to see an invoice for $30,990 before making budget decisions next week. Councilor Scott inquired about the two positions in acting capacity

Finance Committee Page 3 of 3 Printed 6/27/2019 while the city continues to search for the CIO and the salaries of the two acting positions. Councilor-at-large Rossetti requested that Ms. Cooper calculate the cost savings to the council for the two acting positions and report back to the council. Councilor-at-large Rossetti inquired about the 13% increase for software which includes cyber security and MUNIS. Law Mr. Wright presented his proposed budget. There are 125 new claims and 150 pending claims that the law office is currently handling. Councilor-at-large Rossetti inquired about the one vacant assistant city solicitor position and when will it be filled. Councilor Scott inquired about line 530010 for Outside Legal Services. Handouts: • CPA FY19 Annual Report (with CPA Department) • FY 2020 Estimated New Growth (with Assessing Dept)