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HomeMy WebLinkAboutDraft Minutes - City Council - 03/04/2024 - Steering - Town Meeting Day PAGE 1 DRAFT MINUTES STEERING COMMITTEE 4 MARCH 2024 The South Burlington Steering Committee held a meeting on Monday, 4 March 2024, in the Auditorium, South Burlington City Hall, 180 Market Street, and via Gotomeeting remote technology. MEMBERS PRESENT: City Council: M. Emery, Acting Steering Committee Chair; T. Barritt, A. Chalnick, L. Kupferman; J. Baker, City Manager; School Board: K. Bailey, School Board Chair; A. McHenry, C. Tillinghast, T. Warren; V. Nichols, Superintendent of Schools ALSO PRESENT: S. Locke, Deputy City Manager; C. McNeil, City Attorney; M. Machar, Finance Director; T. DiPietro, Public Works Director; Rep. E. Krasnow, Rep. B. Minier, K. Easton, R. Cassidy, S. Dooley, J. Wagner, L. Williams, S. O’Brien, Allison, J. Carpenter, K. Jarvis, D. Bugbee, E. Stewart, I. Dzano, W. Coleman, other members of the public 1. Directions on How to Leave the Building in Case of an Emergency: Ms. Baker provided directions on leaving the building in the event of an emergency and technology options. 2. Agenda Review: Additions, deletions or changes in order of agenda items: No changes were made to the Agenda. 3. Comments & Questions from the public not related to the Agenda: Ms. Carpenter, a volunteer with Let’s Grow Kids, spoke to the need for quality child care in Vermont, especially for children with special needs. She thanked STEERING COMMITTEE 4 MARCH 2024 PAGE 2 South Burlington’s legislators for supporting Act 76 which will make more families eligible for supported child care and also increase wages for child care workers. 4. Presentation of Proposed FY25 City Budget: Ms. Baker thanked the City Council for supporting the City budget. The budget is $65,000,000 of which $21,000,000 is raised from property taxes. Ms. Baker showed a pie chart of the distribution of those funds. The proposed budget represents a commitment to the current level of services in the City. It also provides for a second ambulance, more sidewalk maintenance, a part time position in the Library, investments in school safety including 50% of the cost for school crossing guards, the first action to implement the Climate Action Plan, increases in Green Mountain Transit and the use of ARPA funds. The budget presumes a 2% increase in the Grand List and a 4.4% increase in the TIF Grand List. It also presumes a 7% increase in receipts from local option taxes. There is a new child care contribution added to payroll taxes, a 16.4% increase in health insurance, and increases in liability insurances. The average condo owner would see an increase in city taxes of $85 for the year. The average single family home owner would see an increase of $125 for the year. The average property owner would also see a $64.00 increase for the year in utility costs due mainly to staffing and capital costs. Mr. DiPietro then explained the bond that voters will be asked to approve for construction of an additional water tank on Dorset Street. He also explained how the city’s water system works. The proposed project will provide for more water storage as required by State law, especially in cases of emergencies such as happened on Christmas night. It also allows for maintenance of one tank at a time. It will not increase water pressure. The hope is for construction to begin next spring. Mr. DiPietro showed the project layout and a breakdown of the costs. The city has received a $500,000 grant toward those costs and is applying for an additional $1,000,000 grant. The worst case scenario is that project would cost the average water user $38.66 a year. Mr. DiPietro noted that South Burlington’s utility rates are the lowest in the region. STEERING COMMITTEE 4 MARCH 2024 PAGE 3 Ms. Baker then explained the proposed City Charter Change ballot item. She reviewed the history of the convening of the City Charter Committee and the Committee’s recommendation to increase the membership of the School Board from 5 members to 7 members. Ms. Baker also explained the Charter change process and said that if the ballot item passes, it could take effect in 2025 or 2026, depending on how quickly the Legislature acts on it. Ms. Baker noted that the full budget book is available on-line. She also reminded the community of the upcoming Illuminate Vermont event on April 5-6. 8. Presentation of FY25 School District Budget: Superintendent Nichols said this has been an unprecedented budget year for the School District. She thanked the city’s Legislators for their support during a very complex budget season. She also noted that the process for the school budget is not as linear as the city budget process and involves a number of additional factors. The proposed budget prioritizes student-facing positions, provide for school safety enhancements, focuses on early literacy, bolsters academic rigor, increases multi-lingual supports and features savings for critical funding for facilities needs. The proposed budget is $71,200,000, which represents a 13.86% increase. With the passage of H850, the tax rate increase is 23.25% up from 18.26% from the previous Act 47. Health insurance has increased by 12%. This is negotiated at the State level. The good news is that the cost for the ZEMs is breaking even for the FY25 budget. Supt. Nichols then explained the state factors and noted that the yield has not been finalized. It could go down again. It just recently went down from 23.25% to 23%. The city’s Common Level of Appraisal (CLA) has dropped to 82% which also plays into the school tax calculation. Ms. Emery noted that with properties assessed at 18% below their market value, homeowners are paying less in taxes than their property values indicate they should be paying. Supt. Nichols noted that 80% of the budget relates to salaries, wages, and insurance. All three bargaining units have settled contracts including a new 3- year agreement for administrators. STEERING COMMITTEE 4 MARCH 2024 PAGE 4 One budget question relates to a $2,266,362 surplus and whether to allocate this to the capital reserve fund. If the budget does not pass, the School Board could reconsider this and possibly apply it as revenue which would lower the tax rate. Supt. Nichols noted that 2 districts have postponed votes on their school budgets. Mr. Kupferman asked whether passage of South Burlington’s school budget would have an effect on State thinking. Supt. Nichols said she did not have a good answer to that. She noted that all Chittenden County schools districts have chosen to move forward to a vote. Rep. Minier said there is broad consensus that how Vermont is funding education is not sustainable. There are many other options to consider. He personally favors getting property out of the picture. He also said that next year won’t be any better. He noted that the Legislature is trying to reinstate the State school construction model. They are also considering “right-sizing” schools which could mean some consolidations. Rep. Minier said “There is no cavalry coming.” Ms. Emery said she would support the proposed budget but questioned what would happen if a number of school budgets fail to pass. She cited potential loss of athletics, arts, music, etc. Ms. Bailey noted that 60% of South Burlington taxpayers qualify for “income sensitivity” tax credits. She also noted that 30% of students are eligible for reduced lunches, etc. She saw the issues as a Statewide concern and the need for the State to respond. Ms. Easton asked how we have come to this position. She has watched officials tell the State about potential financial ruin and that the action of the Legislature had unintended consequences. She said she believes State people have a responsibility. 60% of adults live paycheck to paycheck and don’t have the ability to handle a $1,000.00 emergency. There is tension in communities, and there has to be a new way to support education. She wasn’t sure she would support the proposed budget. Mr. Coleman cited structural problems in all schools: the overwhelming amount of salaries go to already high-paid teachers. Communities are not in a good position to recruit. There are not statistics that say long-serving teachers are better educators. STEERING COMMITTEE 4 MARCH 2024 PAGE 5 Rep. Krasnow said she has conversations every day with seniors and others who are struggling with income that doesn’t go up. She spends every day in Montpelier trying to find an answer to this complex, terrifying situation. It will be a top priority when the Legislature returns. She asked the public to hold her accountable to find a solution. Mr. Cassidy said he is committed to education and to the city’s School District. He will support the budget. He is also deeply worried that the budget will fail. He asked what the School Board would have to do to get a budget that has a reasonable chance of approval. Supt. Nichols said every reduction has a negative consequence. If the budget doesn’t pass, they will look at options. She noted one new piece is the language in H-850 which provides additional money because of the change to the equalized pupil formula. This will be 6 cents in FY25 which will provide a little bit of relief. But they will still be talking about as much as $8,000,000 in cuts. If it’s $3,000,000, the Board could reconsider the surplus as revenue. They could also look at staff reductions and cuts to the arts, athletics, AP classes, administrators. They could also increase class sizes. They would try to bring forth a budget that the community can support, possibly in the 10% range. She stressed that with staffing, the first to be cut are the most recently hired. 5. Other Business: No other business was presented. As there was no further business to come before the Steering Committee, Ms. Bailey moved to adjourn. Mr. Barritt seconded. The motion passed with all present voting in favor, and the meeting was adjourned at 8:00 p.m. _________________________________ Clerk _________________________________ School Board Clerk