MINUTES OF THE JOINT MEETING OF THE CUMBERLAND TOWN COUNCIL AND SCHOOL COMMITTEE

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2025 AT 6:00 P.M.

CUMBERLAND TOWN HALL, EVERETT “MOE” BONNER, JR. COUNCIL CHAMBERS

45 BROAD STREET, CUMBERLAND, RHODE ISLAND

OPEN SESSION

 

CALL TO ORDER

Council President Michael L. Kinch called the meeting to order at 6:03 p.m.

 

PRESENT:  Council President Michael L. Kinch, Councilors Timothy C. Magill, Robert G. Shaw, Jr, James K. Metivier, and Councilor Jodi C. Sweet.

 

Also present were Mayor Jeffrey J. Mutter, Kerri Rossi, Deputy Town Clerk; Phillip Thornton, School Superintendent; Timothy McGrath, School Director of Finance; School Committee Chair Amy Vogel; and Committee members Andrew Bacon, Heather Chea, Jason Dean, and Lisa Goldstein.

 

ABSENT: Councilors Peter Bradley, Lisa Beaulieu, and School Committee members Keri Smith and Kerry Feather.  

 

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

 

DISCUSSION

a.      Pre-Budget consultations and three-year forecasting with the School Committee pursuant to the requirements of RIGL 16-2-21 through 16-2-21.3

 

Council President Kinch welcomed and thanked the School Committee on behalf of the Town Council for their cooperation in scheduling this meeting date.  The Council President introduced the School Finance Director Timothy McGrath who has a presentation to make. 

Mr. McGrath explained the three-year projection as part of tonight's meeting attached to the end of the handout.  He noted a couple of things from the school side.   The first is that they expect to use between $1.7 and $2.2 million of the FY 2023 $5.6 million fund balance as part of this fiscal year.  As they look ahead to the FY 2025-2026 budget, the main budget drivers of the School Department are in the second year of our union contracts, so we're budgeting a 3% increase for both those unions.  Their transportation contract will also be in the second year with a locked 4% increase.  The bright side is they see the trends in charter schools going in the right direction, BVP, and the like that should be about a $200,000 decrease in expenses, which is good news.

 

Mr. McGrath also noted that when the Governor's budget initially increased Cumberland to $1.9 million, it turned out to be incorrect.  Late last week we became aware that the Pre-K students were double counted across the state, so everybody's state aid numbers were inflated resulting in a $400,000 hit to Cumberland.  They are slated to receive an increase in state aid, not the $1.9 they wanted, but at $1.6.  Each year they’re told that the number is static and every year it seems to change and hopefully we will see more of that state aid.

 

Superintendent Phillip Thornton explained that state aid is driven by enrollment, which over the next three years, they are looking to get approximately 220 students.  The breakdown of those numbers is about 100 elementary, about 74 high school, and about 50 middle school students.  State aid will still be coming in ahead to give the projections.  Only a few towns are seeing enrollment growth, that is Cumberland, North Smithfield and Lincoln, the northern part of the state, has been seeing the growth.

 

Finance Director Mr. McGrath states this three-year projection is very preliminary.  They aren’t saying they are asking for these numbers but just putting a 3% increase across the board to see what the trends look like. Cautions that these numbers are still very preliminary due to being deep in the budget process.

 

Mayor Mutter stated that he wasn't aware of that change in state aid and questioned how this came about. 

 

Mr. McGrath explained they found out late last week when they were going through the enrollment numbers, that the Pre-K students, approximately 48 students, were counted as one student.  Pre-K students are part-time students, so they should have counted as .5.  That is what caused a reduction from those 48 students down to 24, which then threw down state aid. 

 

Mr. Thornton stated he met with the superintendents from Burrilville and North Smithfield who verified the same occurred with them.  There appear to be more funds that aren’t going to districts.  All the towns he spoke to took a hit. 

 

Mayor Mutter questioned if the State has made any corrections in their documentation. 

 

Mr. McGrath stated their documentation hasn’t been amended.  When he reached out to RIDE, he wanted to get their spreadsheet to work with increased enrollments, because the March numbers are higher than the October numbers.  RIDE sent the spreadsheet and that’s when they became aware of the reduction of $400,000.  They haven't amended it officially, assuming it is part of the budget process.  Hopefully, they'll restore that because, as the Superintendent stated, that money's earmarked somewhere, so they would love to see that restored. 

 

Mr. Thornton noted enrollment is up from October 1 to March 15.  At the weekly check, we're plus 10 from October 1, so that's more data that we will come in the formula based on that number.

 

Council President Kinch stated a few items were mentioned regarding the enrollment. 

 

Mr. Thornton stated over the next three years, it's about 220, and next year probably about a third of that. 

 

Mr. Kinch asked if any contracts were up next, and Mr. Thornton stated no. 

 

Mr. Kinch asked if there is still a push to get everybody signed up who should qualify for reduced/free lunches.

 

Mr. McGrath stated there's always a push for that at the building level.  There has been a change in the way the State looks at this.  They only go off the direct cert piece, which he believes comes through the SNAP programs and items like that.  When they do the State Aid formula, they take the direct certs and then add a multiplier, which he believes this year is 1.6 to that number.  The more people that do the direct cert route is what we need.

 

Mr. Kinch added that he knows it’s a 3-year period but the Mayor will touch on it and that it’s going probably to be tighter than it will be this year.  He asked what their big ask is for this coming year. 

 

Mr. Thornton responded that he hasn’t built the School budget yet for the School Committee to consider, but globally right now, he’s looking at trying to maintain what we have.  He may propose one or two jobs, because he thinks they have to be mindful to look where they are, look at their neighbors, and see how they're struggling.  We don't want to be in that situation.  We have one special education program that is needed.

 

Mayor Mutter questioned enrollment and how the same entity was responsible for giving us enrollment numbers that proved to be woefully inaccurate. 

 

School Committee Chairperson Amy Vogel replied yes. 

 

Mr. Thornton stated he went through the last five or six years and they were within 2% either way, .98 or 1-2 points.  A company called Cropper is used for the buildings that are being worked on, and that's also saying the same thing.  They were pretty close.  Factoring in the BVP kids coming back also adds to the equation.  BVP used to be a $4,000,000 price tag for Cumberland Public Schools.  Now it's around $2.7.  So that's coming now.

 

Mr. Kinch stated it is a small number, but I see a big increase in professional development as some topics come up. 

 

Mr. Mcgrath stated the numbers are a blanket 3 or 4% increase, again those numbers are very preliminary.  There are not any individual items associated with that.  They are working with Mr. DiManna’s office and seeing additional curriculum rollouts that will need to be done over the next three years. 

 

Mr. Thornton explained that the State mandates districts do new curriculums approved by them, so they’re in that process.  And as you roll them out, training is needed for the curriculum.

 

Mr. Kinch questioned after-school programs. 

 

Mr. McGrath stated there is a 3% and a 4% increase on top.  At some point, they are paying employees for after-school coverage.

 

Mayor Mutter thanked the School Department for all the gains achieved by the School Department. 

He recognized the hard work of a lot of different individuals.  He also noted the accomplishments of having three blue ribbon schools and is one of the few municipalities that are experiencing enrollment increases.  They are also top five school districts in the State.  All are working to keep the improvements going.  He reported that the Town received a distinguished budget award.  The biggest driver for all of us is the investment in school construction and how that impacts the general fund. 

 

Mayor Mutter discussed his slide presentation.  Highlighted from the presentation are: Ongoing financial needs/plan, current fund balance status, debt service and school housing aid projections (current vs July 2023), increased housing aid in FY2026, Revenue FY2025, and Tax Levy.

 

Mayor Mutter also acknowledged the relationship with the Town Council, the School Committee, previous School Committees, and the School Administration. This relationship doesn’t happen everywhere.  They have been fortunate to work together to find the best solutions.  They will be tested like never before. 

 

School Committee Chairperson Amy Vogel questioned the current fund balance status, the balance fund FY25, and referred to the asterisk next to the School (undesignated). 

 

Mayor Mutter stated that the School Committee’s approved budget in FY25 was never reconciled on the Town side and that it may be completed.  Amendments are always made at least once and possibly multiple times.  

Mr. McGrath said it may be between $1.7 and $2.2. 

 

Mr. Thornton stated that they passed the budget at the Town level before the contract was finalized, modeled 2% and settled at 3%.

 

Chairperson Vogel questioned whether qualifies substantially complete with the housing aid projects. 

 

Mr. McGrath stated the Department of Education as of June 30, if your architect considers the building substantially complete it's not tied to certificates of occupancy, based on a percentage of completion, and they use June 30 as the cutoff.  They submit forms and architects and OPM sign off on that, and it goes to RIDE and they consider it substantially complete. For the project to claim housing aid, it must be substantially complete; they are on track.

 

Mayor Mutter mentioned the $3.9 number and Ms. Vogel asked if that number would be received in 2026.

 

Mr. McGrath spoke on the calculations and how RIDE reviews.

 

Ms. Vogel questioned how the tax levy year and the fiscal year are not the same.

 

Mayor Mutter explained that they collect almost 50% of the revenue in the first payment.  Most of that is attributed to a 2% discount, which then the banks are legally obligated to make that payment in full.    We rely heavily on that collection period because of the unsynchronized cycle that we have here.

 

Mr. Dean asked about the revenue sources that went away and were those legacy revenue sources that the state or federal government removed or reduced were the COVID-based revenue sources.

 

Mayor Mutter replied they were neither.  The Town knew that they were going to face bridging before we had to borrow the money for the $83,000,000, the 2018 bond.   The Town set aside those funds so they could have used that money and done something with it, but then they’d have been staring at significantly higher tax rates without doing so, so we put them aside.  The only Federal one is the ARPA money and one of the qualifying expenses was OPEB, so that's what they did.  The rest of them are all really derived from the Town.  As the fiscal year ends and if the budget shows a surplus, instead of throwing it into the general fund surplus, it goes into a different pocket.

 

PUBLIC COMMENTS

None

 

ADJOURNMENT

MOTION BY COUNCILOR SHAW, SECONDED BY COUNCILOR MAGILL, AND IT IS VOTED TO ADJOURN AT 6:48 P.M.  VOTE 5/0.

 

 

 

Individuals requiring interpreter services for the hearing impaired or need additional information should notify the Town Clerk's Office at (401) 728-2400 ext. 138 no less than 48 hours before the meeting.

 

 

TELEPHONE: 401-728-2400, Ext. 138     ·  www.cumberlandri.org