ANSONIA – DERBY – Government officials from Ansonia and Derby are scheduled to go over city finances during separate appearances in front of a state commission Wednesday (Sept 10).
The Municipal Finance Advisory Commission (MFAC) is scheduled to meet virtually at 10 a.m. The public can listen by phone. Dial 860 840 2075 and, at the prompt, enter 228 380 015#.
MFAC is an eight-member panel appointed by the governor. Four of its members are municipal fiscal officers, such as finance directors. Three are non-public employees and one is from the Connecticut Office of Policy and Management (OPM). Read more at the MFAC website.
“The commission frequently holds meetings with municipalities who exhibit unsound or irregular financial practices including delinquent audits and/or internal control weaknesses that may lead to financial challenges,” according to the MFAC website. “The commission provides financial advice and recommendations to municipalities based upon its collective professional expertise and experience.”
MFAC does not have the power to take over the city’s finance department.
New Territory For Ansonia
Ansonia’s appearance is unique in that the city was placed into MFAC’s lap by state Rep. Kara Rochelle, a Democrat who represents Ansonia and Derby in the state House of Representatives.
The state budget included language that forced the City of Ansonia to appear in front of MFAC. Lawmakers attempted to remove the language, but Rochelle filibustered to keep it in.
Click here for a previous story.
In a statement on the House floor, Rochelle said Ansonia was in bad financial shape, running deficits, handing in state-mandated audits late, and selling assets such as the sewer system to stay afloat. Click here to watch a clip of Rochelle talking about why Ansonia needs to be in front of MFAC.
Mayor David Cassetti’s Republican administration said Rochelle, along with Ansonia Democrats, were spreading misinformation to score political points. The Ansonia Board of Aldermen, by a 12-0 vote, condemned Rochelle’s action, saying they “deeply” disapproved “of the unilateral and politically motivated legislative conduct of Rep. Kara Rochelle.”
The resolution also demanded Rochelle to come to an Aldermen meeting “to explain her actions directly to the people of Ansonia.”
The dust up happened during a tough, confusing, and historic budget cycle in Ansonia. For the first time, thanks to charter changes approved by voters early in Cassetti’s tenure, the proposed school and city budgets went to voters for approval. They voted no three times. The Aldermen eventually reduced the proposed budget by an amount below the referendum trigger.
Ansonia is the first municipality listed on MFAC’s Sept. 10 agenda. An official or officials from OPM is scheduled to present “tiers criteria results.” The agenda and agenda packet do not explain what that is.
However, OPM classifies municipalities in different tiers, an indication of how much help the municipality needs, and whether the MFAC appearances are voluntary or involuntary.
Cassetti and Kurt Miller, Ansonia’s budget director, were sent copies of the MFAC agenda.
Miller sent MFAC a two-page letter dated Sept. 2 that deals with projected dollar amounts from the 2024-2025 budget compared to what actually happened. Miller also provides an update on the status of the fiscal year 2024-2025 audit, and points out there are no longer vacancies in the finance departments of the city or Ansonia Public Schools.
Miller’s letter also mentions a “corrective action plan” to deal with two problems with the school district’s bookkeeping found in an audit.
Miller’s letter concludes with a statement saying Ansonia is looking forward to working with MFAC.
“We see this as an opportunity to openly review the city’s audit and results, and to engage in constructive dialogue on ways we can strengthen our financial operations to better serve our residents,” Miller wrote.
Old Hat For Derby
The City of Derby has been appearing in front of MFAC since September 2020, when Mayor Rich Dziekan’s administration discovered the city’s budget accidentally double-counted school grant money before he was in office. The blunder was one of several that created a budget deficit.
The initial meetings were voluntary until August of 2023 when MFAC, saying they no longer trusted the financial data from the Dziekan administration, voted to make Derby’s appearance mandatory.
The city has made progress in correcting long-standing bookkeeping problems pointed out in past audits, and has twice since 2020 issued recovery plans to close budget deficits.
The most recent was under Mayor Joe DiMartino, who, in April 2024, supported an increase to the mill rate of 4.6 mills, along with several other financial initiatives.
DiMartino said it was necessary to reverse years of underbudgeting that had left the city $2 million in the hole when he took office.
The most recent Derby budget did not raise the mill rate.