About 20 residents unanimously approved a transfer of $147,185.08 from the town’s general fund to the Board of Education at a Town Meeting last Monday (July 13) to offset a shortfall in the school district’s 2007- 2008 budget.
According to a 2008 town audit of the 2007- 2008 budget year conducted by Michaud and Accavallo, CPA, LLC, of Ansonia, it was discovered that the school system had made pre-payments for workers compensation, liability, dental and health insurances premiums in June of 2008.
However, the funding for those payments was allotted in the 2008 – 2009 budget.
To compensate for those early insurance payments, auditors directed the board to make an accounting adjustment to its 2008 – 2009 budget, which required the board to return $497,000 to the town’s general fund in January.
First Selectman Mary Ann Drayton-Rogers said the early insurance payments “should never have happened.”
Jerry Schwab, member of the board’s finance subcommittee said due to the board’s $497,000 deficit, the board initiated spending freezes and worked with the boards of finance and selectmen to find cost savings in the 2008 – 2009 budget.
“The board of education tried to save as much money as it could,” he said. “We scrutinized every line item and lowered our deficit.”
At the conclusion of the 2008- 2009 budget year, the education budget showed a $147,185.08 deficit after paying its mandatory expenses.
Drayton-Rogers said the funding for the board’s shortfall would come from the town’s general fund, which currently contains 10.83 percent of the town’s current budget, which is approximately $3.3 million.
“We are handling this is in a very fiscally responsible way,” she said.
Drayton-Rogers added that over the last several months the Board of Finance has wanted to move forward with a special audit of the board of education’s finances.
Progress on that audit was stalled because, according to Rogers, the board did not follow the town charter, which requires the approval of the Board of Selectmen.
“The Board of Finance cannot take charge of expenditures or requests,” she said.
Following a decision by Town Attorney Fran Teodosio, the Board of Finance followed charter protocol, and the Board of Selectman approved $25,000 for the special audit, which was followed by Board of Finance approval on June 22.
“The $25,000 was based on inquiring what other towns paid for audit services,” Drayton-Rogers said.
A request for proposal for the special audit of the Board of Education’s 2007- 2008 budget went out this week.
