Granby Finance Board Hears FEMA Updates, Account Statements

The Granby Board of Finance held its final meeting of the 2011-2012 fiscal year Monday night. The board reviewed account statements from education and municipal portions of the town budget and approved an appropriation request for a senior citizen transportation grant.

Granby Town Manager William Smith discussed the municipal account statements from his May report with the board as well as federal reimbursement for costs incurred during Hurricane Irene and the severe, late October snowstorm.

The town expects roughly $20,000 in repayment for Hurricane Irene, according to Smith. FEMA is reimbursing towns that met various emergency standards 75 percent of the total cost of handing the hurricane and its aftermath.

The same percentage is expected in compensation for the much larger costs incurred by the late October snowstorm. Although FEMA hasn’t provided an official, final decision, Smith said multiple reviews of town documents related to the storm spending went well.

“We’re in good shape with that,” Smith said, noting that FEMA has been overwhelmed with reimbursement requests.

The town appropriated $2 million to deal with that storm and spent approximately $1.8 million of that money. The town will end up paying between $450,000 and $500,000 of its own funds after the expected FEMA refund.

In other budget news, the municipal side of the budget will likely return about $75,000 in town funds due to staff turnover and lapses in positions that occurred in the 2011-2012 fiscal year.

Smith said the town has achieved 101 percent of projected tax collections. The town has also earned $4,000 more than expected in building permit revenue and received about $15,000 from a class-action court settlement related to what Smith called “shenanigans” involving Bank of America.

Conversely, the has gathered $26,500, slightly less revenue than expected.

“It’s been a slow year in receiving town clerk fees,” Smith said, noting that June is a busy month for the town clerk and an additional $5,000 to $10,000 in revenue is expected.

The education budget account statements, presented by Harry Traver, Granby public schools business manager, showed an $114,000 surplus as the current financial year approaches its end on Saturday, June 30. Traver said the surplus will return to the town’s coffers.

A number of repairs to various school buildings and fields are in the works, according to Traver. The oil tank at needs to be replaced, as does the motorized lift at , which is required under the Americans with Disabilities Act. The tennis courts at Granby Memorial High School will be refurbished, as yearly repairs to the courts are approaching a cost between $9,000 and $10,000 per year.

Traver also noted that Granby’s public schools have approximately 175 special education students out of 2,158 total students, 8 percent of the total student body. That number is low compared to peer groups in other area towns, he said.

Granby’s special education programs and attendant legal services have been quiet, with no placements considered especially contentious or brought to legal action.