by Frank Schroth
Update 02.21.14 @ 12:45
In a conversation with the Town Treasurer, Jim McAuliffe, he explained that the information that town officials were working from last Wednesday as reported below was incomplete. There are various ways premiums can be managed and the Town Accountant is in discussions with auditor. The Warrant Committee is meeting again Monday evening and there will be a complete reappraisal and discussion of the amount required to pay down debt service. While Mr. McAuliffe did not have a specific amount he said it would be substantially less thab the $1.6 million discussed at last Wednesday’s meeting.
A grim budget got grimmer this past week when town hall learned that the Milton’s debt service to be paid by appropriation increased by ~60% over last year. The debt service paid in 2014 was $965,369. This year it is increased to $1,585,366. This news comes at an especially inopportune time for the Warrant Committee which has been reviewing budgets with town departments for the past 2+ months and is heading into their annual all day (actually evening) meeting next week when they will vote to recommend budget appropriations for town departments.
The chair of the Warrant Committee, Ted Hays, received the news Wednesday. At their session that evening Amy Dexter, Town Accountant, said she had just received the news of an increase in the interest of the town’s bond rates. Hays remarked that typically when a town’s bond rating improves, as Milton’s recently did, the interest rates go down.
Hays reported that the “problem” was $328,086. This amount will be covered by a combination of free cash and debt stabilization funds.
This will reduce the amount available to fund town department’s FY15 operational requests. The warrant committee will be meeting at the Milton High Library on Wednesday, February 26th at 6:00pm to hold final discussions with department heads and vote on appropriations for the town warrant.
Until further information becomes available, I will with hold a full comment but at first look this does not make sense.
I’m assuming that by “debt service ” we are talking about money that the Town pays the bondholders of the Town’s long term debt and not short term note borrowing.
If my assumption is accurate there are only a few ways debt service could increase.
Either more bonds were issued , in which case the increase would not be a surprise,
the Town issued variable rate bonds , which doesn’t make sense or that the town was making interest only payments and now are paying principal plus interest.
In almost all cases the only surprise would be the amount increase and not the increase.
A little more inf. would be appreciated.
In any case, given Milton’s extremely tight budget constraints, we cannot afford any surprises.
Milton Access TV, can the Wednesday night warrant meeting be televised? It would help inform Town Meeting members and residents about the articles prior to our receiving the warrant. I would record and watch it and think that others would appreciate this information too. Thanks.
Cindy
As we do every year, the warrant committee meeting will be broadcasted live to the town.
Tune in Tuesday Night at 6pm to Comcast Channel 22 and RCN 15 for coverage.
Now I’m confused. The article says the meeting is Wednesday the 27th, but the 27th is Thursday. Then we’re told to tune in on Tuesday. Could we have a clarification please?
My error in stating the 27th. The Warrant Committee meeting to approve the FY15 budget in on Weds the 26th at 6:00pm in the MHS library. THe correction has been made. This is the information posted on the Town Clerk’s web site. My apologies for the confusion. It is my understanding that the session will be broadcast.