The Marion Finance Committee started making its article recommendations for the Annual Town Meeting Warrant on March 30, stopping near the halfway point to await a copy of the draft warrant for its next meeting.
Finance Director Judy Mooney started by presenting a couple of small deductions in the budget: The town’s school budget is down by another $2,703, and the Upper Cape Cod Regional Technical School budget is down by $4,700, bringing the total Fiscal Year operating budget to $25,473,928, a 2.84 percent increase over FY21.
“That’s the lowest we’ve seen in at least five years,” said Mooney, “so it’s a pretty balanced budget there.”
The committee quickly moved into article recommendations, recommending all of them starting with Article 1, a zero increase to elected officials’ salaries. Article 2, the operating budget, was also quickly recommended.
The following articles were also recommended, some of them after a brief discussion: Article 3, the Water Enterprise budget of $2,463,476; Article 4, the Sewer Enterprise budget of $3,392,767, up 8.08 percent from FY21; and Article 5, $25,000 from Overlay Surplus to fund the Assessors’ three-year revaluation of real and personal property.
The committee noted that this revaluation would likely affect Marion’s Old Rochester Regional School District assessment with the rising property values. However, it probably will not be evident until the year after revaluations are complete.
Article 6 was recommended for $50,000 from free cash to fund the accrued benefits for retiring employees. Mooney described how this article differs from Other Post-Employment Benefits (OPEB) by funding the sick-time, personal-time and vacation-time buyout of employees who announce their retirement, giving the town enough time to plan ahead. Mooney said she prefers to keep that funded at $75,000.
Article 7 was recommended for $50,000 from free cash to fund building maintenance of town facilities, accounting for smaller or maintenance-oriented projects like painting that do not qualify for consideration as capital-planning projects.
The committee voted to amend and then recommend Article 8 for $50,000 for fire hydrant replacements. The article originally had the entire amount appropriated from the Water Retained Earnings account, but Selectman John Waterman, present via Zoom, opposed using Water Enterprise money to fund a project that benefits not only water ratepayers but all residents in Marion.
Town Administrator Jay McGrail said he figured that, since there was more money in water retained earnings this year than in free cash, he would take from the water earnings.
“But it’s a matter of principle,” said Waterman. “It’s not a water expense; it’s a community safety expense. … We shouldn’t be setting a precedent for paying for fire hydrants …”
As a result of further discussion, Fincom agreed that Article 7 would be funded by $25,000 in water retained earnings and $25,000 taken from Article 9.
Article 9 was for $50,000 in free cash to fund tax foreclosure/tax lien processes; it was reduced to $25,000.
Article 10 was recommended for $115,900 from free cash to fund the Community Center and Fire Station 1 sewer improvement project.
Article 11 was recommended for $113,100 from Sewer Retained Earnings to fund the Hiller Road and Mill Street sewer improvement project; Article 12 for $190,000 from Sewer Retained Earnings to fund an inflow-and-infiltration (I/I) mitigation plan also received a swift recommendation.
Fincom also recommended: Article 13 for $24,000 in free cash for ballistic vests for the Police Department; Article 14 for $10,000 in free cash to fund the Fire Station 1 bathroom design and construction project; Article 15 for $70,000 in free cash to pay for two Department of Public Works truck replacements; and Article 16 for $123,500 in free cash to fund the re-siding of the Town House and purchase a generator.
All the exterior work slated for the Town House will be completed by the fall, McGrail said. Waterman credited McGrail for the accomplishment of having funded the entire exterior renovation of the Town House without having to borrow a dime.
Article 17 was recommended for $16,000 from the Marine Waterways Account to buy a new outboard engine for the pump-out boat; Article 18 is for $81,000 in free cash to fund the Community Center storage addition.
McGrail said the original project was scaled down after two Recreation Department mowers were moved to the DPW. The project calls for a storage addition on the back of the building that will replace the dilapidated sheds on the property and will also upgrade the roofline for cohesiveness.
Fincom Chairman Peter Winters abstained from the otherwise unanimous vote, still unconvinced after a brief discussion that the project could not be scaled down further.
Article 19, the only school-related article on the warrant, was recommended for $36,000 from free cash to fund the resurfacing of the Sippican School playground.
The committee took its time discussing Article 20, the $2,475,000 of debt needed to, hopefully, complete the Wastewater Treatment Plant lagoon project.
Town officials are hopeful that the Town will only have to borrow about $725,000, as long as an anticipated $1,750,000 grant pans out. Nonetheless, as it stands now, if the article fails at Town Meeting, Marion will suffer the consequences with the Department of Environmental Protection and the Environmental Protection Agency.
“This absolutely positively has to pass at Town Meeting or else we’re in a world of trouble,” McGrail said. He said he needs Fincom’s help in advocating for the article at Town Meeting on May 10; otherwise, the project will remain incomplete. Furthermore, the town is up for its next NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) permit next year so, “This would be a problem,” said Waterman.
“I know that this is a tough pill to swallow,” McGrail told Fincom, “but this is one that we need you to swallow with us.”
In total, the NPDES-mandated upgrades will eventually total $9,600,000 in borrowed money.
Waterman realizes that it is “frustrating” that the town has had to go before Fincom to report cost increases three times now. He lamented how the Buzzards Bay Coalition had pressured Marion through a civil lawsuit to spend funds on wastewater plan upgrades instead of other areas that may have been more effective.
Article 21 was recommended for $100,949 in free cash to deposit into the OPEB Trust Fund. Marion’s OPEB liabilities have increased by $2,000,000 from $9,000,000 to $11,000,000. Accounting for at least a part of the increase was the retirement of two relatively young police chiefs, beginning with Lincoln Miller at the start of 2018 and then John Garcia at the end of 2020. As Waterman pointed out, Chief Miller has still not reached the legal age for entering the Medicaid system.
Fincom skipped ahead to recommend three more articles before adjourning: Article 34 for $2,000 to be taken out of the Chester Vose Fund and used for the reduction of taxes; Article 35 for $150,000 from Recreation fees toward the Recreation Revolving Account; and Article 36 for $17,500 from Health Department fees to fund the Health Department Revolving Account.
The Marion Finance Committee meets again on Wednesday, March 31, at 7:00 pm to continue its Annual Town Meeting Warrant recommendations.
Marion Finance Committee
By Jean Perry