Note: These proposed minutes should be considered preliminary until they are approved by the
board at a future meeting.
WINDHAM SOUTHEAST SCHOOL DISTRICT (WSESD) FINANCE COMMITTEE
TUESDAY, JANUARY 9, 2024
REGULAR MEETING – 5:00PM
REMOTE MEETING
DRAFT MINUTES
WSESD Finance Committee Members Present: Chairperson Shaun Murphy (SM), Anne Beekman (AB), Deborah Stanford (DS), Kimberly Price (KP)
WSESD Finance Committee Members Absent: none
WSESU/SD Staff Present: Business Administrator Frank Rucker, Superintendent Mark Speno
Others present: Jaci Reynolds, Maggie Foley, Laura Chapman, Tim Maciel
Please note: Because of technological limitations, this attendance record may be incomplete.
CALL TO ORDER:
Chairperson SM called the meeting to order at 5pm.
I. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – DECEMBER 5, 2023
MOTION BY DS TO APPROVE THE MINUTES. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
II. FY25 BUDGET DEVELOPMENT PLANNING DISCUSSION; REVIEW STATE FUNDING FORMULA UPDATES AND CAPITAL PROJECTS
WSESU Business Administrator Frank Rucker shared and reviewed a document: “Windham Southeast School District FY25 Proposed Budget Summary.” Highlights included:
• The Finance office recently received some new statistics and information from the Agency of Education.
• There have been some updates Mr. Rucker has received since the prior draft:
◦ The state is essentially requiring the District to “pay itself,” by making Brattleboro Union High School (BUHS) pay the Windham Regional Career Center (WRCC) for the approximately 63 students that will attend. The Legislature is reviewing the funding formula.
◦ An addition of $150,000 for the Oak Grove capital project, due to bids being slightly higher than anticipated.
• The Common Level of Appraisal (CLA) statistics are fiscally unfavorable. If there are no changes, this will have a negative affect on the homestead tax rate.
Mr. Rucker shared and reviewed a document, “Windham Southeast School District Homestead School Tax Rate, State Funding Formula, Estimated as of 1.09.24, prelim. AOE LTWADM data.” Highlights
included:
• This is the same document Mr. Rucker shared at the December 20 Board meeting.
• Details on the revisions on Page 3 of the document.
• An explanation of how the document is organized, and how it is used to show how the Homestead Tax Rate is calculated. This document is also used to calculate the Income Sensitivity Threshold.
• The yield is 9,452, and Mr. Rucker hopes this number will change. This number was shared in the Tax Commissioner’s letter, and it is a number that is compared to per-pupil spending.
• The budget total has changed since the last draft, to reflect approximately $150,000 more, due to the Oak Grove capital project. This brings the total to $65,861,000, from the previous figure of $65,707,000.
• Mr. Rucker offered some calculations, and an explanation, of how the tax rate is developed. Subtract $7,379,000 in revenues from the spending proposal to get $58 million. Divide that by the long-term daily weighted average of membership (aka the student count) — and that number has increased a few times — and is now at 3,734, to get the cost-per-student, which is $15,660.
• Last year the cost-per-student was $14,940. The FY25 figure represents a 4.8% change. Because the District is well under the Act 127 10%-increase threshold, we take the cost-per- student of $15,660 and divide it by the yield, which makes the tax rate $1.65. But, as per Act 127, when the tax increase is less than 10%, we are capped, which thus makes the tax rate $1.594, or a 5% increase.
• The CLAs have changed a lot. Mr. Rucker shared a 3-year history of Brattleboro’s CLA. In this current period, real-estate prices are averaging much higher than tax assessed values, mainly related to the destabilizing effects from the pandemic.
• An explanation of how CLAs are affected when town reappraisals do not align with real-estate sale prices.
• Mr. Rucker and Superintendent Mark Speno have contacted legislators about this.
• Approximately 70% of Vermont taxpayers receive income sensitivity tax relief. Mr. Rucker explained how this works, and its parameters.
• What kind of spending reductions would be necessary to effectively reduce the CLA adjusted tax rate, and that they would be severe and ill-advised in order to maintain a positive educational experience for students.
• This is a statewide challenge, and the District has no control over the real-estate market and it’s impact on CLA adjusted school property taxes
SM explained how a town’s reappraisal affects the tax rate, with an example of Guilford’s recent reassessment, as well as some legislative background on associated requirements.
Mr. Rucker noted that if the Legislature froze the CLA from last year, the tax increase would be much lower. Mr. Speno said he and Mr. Rucker have made this informal recommendation to legislative representatives.
Mr. Rucker shared and reviewed a document, “Windham Southeast School District FY25 Capital Plan.”
Highlights included:
• The document is organized in the same format as last year.
• A typical year sees 40 projects across the District.
• The administration has done a great deal of work to remove fossil fuels from the District’s energy needs to heat buildings.
• An explanation of how this document is organized: by school site, and by type of improvement.
• The $55 million bond for BAMS/BUHS/WRCC is paid off, but upkeep is necessary to keep these buildings in a condition that ensures safety and health for students and staff.
• At the upcoming Board meeting, the Board will review for approval a bid for the all-electric Heat pump HVAC system at Oak Grove School. The PCB-remediation project at Oak Grove is almost complete.
• A few more upgrades are necessary at Academy School.
• The Canal Street School needs upgrades to its building.
• There is $4.8 million in the capital reserves fund. There is a plan to spend $4.4 million in FY24. $2.83 million in reserves is expected to be used for FY25 planned projects. There is $3 million in the FY25 budget to assist funding the $6.2m capital improvements in the upcoming fiscal year. Grant funding is possible, but Mr. Rucker recommends budgeting conservatively
for this resource. A reminder that some pandemic-recovery federal funding sources are no longer available.
• A review of the forecast for subsequent years for capital needs.
• A review of how the Finance department develops the capital plan, with a reminder that it is an ongoing process as more project information arrives and requires engaging engineers and consultants to inform the process.
• A review of the BUHS capital plan to illustrate how the projects, with the help of Robert Clark, get defined through specification development, bid, funded, and implemented. Each project is recorded in the capital plan to inform when the useful life of the asset and the year to replace it for future planning.
• Another example reviewed from the capital plan document; Putney Central School needs some upgrades to its playground, flooring, facade, roofing, and HVAC controls.
III. FISCAL YEAR-TO-DATE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Mr. Rucker shared and reviewed a document, “WSESD – General Ledger – FY24 YTD School Expense Summary Statement.” Highlights included:
• This document is on the website.
• It covers the quarter ending in December, 2023.
• A review of the current year’s budget, with amendments. Mr. Rucker noted all amendments must be fully funded using money other than taxes.
• A review of the spending, encumbrances, and remaining unencumbered funds, for the first six months of the current fiscal year.
• A review of by-site fiscal year year-to-date spending.
• A review of by-function fiscal year year-to-date spending.
IV. APPROVAL OF WARRANTS
SM said he had reviewed the warrants and was confident in approving them at the Board meeting. He said he will follow up with Mr. Rucker with questions.
V. OTHER BUSINESS
There was none.
MOTION BY KP TO ADJOURN. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
The meeting adjourned at 5:57pm.
***
DOCUMENTS SHARED AT THIS MEETING:
• Windham Southeast School District FY25 Proposed Budget Summary.
• Windham Southeast School District Homestead School Tax Rate, State Funding Formula,
Estimated as of 1.09.24, prelim. AOE LTWADM data.
• Windham Southeast School District FY25 Capital Plan.
• WSESD – General Ledger – FY24 YTD School Expense Summary Statement.
Respectfully submitted by Wendy M. Levy from minutes taken by Wendy M. Levy.
This represents my understanding of the above dated meeting. If you have any changes, please submit
them at the next Finance Committee meeting.
