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School finance director cites 10% reserve guideline; committee votes to enter nonpublic session under RSA provisions
Summary
During the March 24 meeting the district's finance director said an auditor suggested at least a 10% reserve for a district of Manchester's size and provided model conversions; later the committee voted to enter nonpublic session under cited RSA provisions with roll call recorded.
Committee members asked the finance director during the March 24 meeting what level of reserves is prudent for a district the size of Manchester. The finance director said she consulted with the district auditor (identified as Cheryl in the meeting) and relayed that the auditor said a prudent target for a district of Manchester's size would be at least 10 percent of the budget.
The finance director and other speakers converted that guidance into rough dollar figures during the public discussion. The director said 10 percent “would be somewhere in the area of” roughly $24,000,000 when applied to the district's budget figures; in the same exchange the director said the district currently expects to have about $20,000,000 in reserves by the end of the year after planned uses of roughly $4,500,000. A committee member and the treasurer noted 15 percent would translate to about $36,000,000.
Later in the meeting, Committee Member Baines moved — seconded by Committee Member Turner — to enter a nonpublic session under the RSA provisions read aloud at the meeting (transcript: “RSA 90 one-eight 32 AB and CEJ and I and RSA 90 one-eight 2 I” as recited). The motion passed after a roll-call sequence in which the members present recorded affirmative votes. The committee cited personnel hiring, reputation-sensitive matters, negotiations, confidential commercial or financial information, legal advice and collective bargaining as reasons under the RSA text read on the record.
Why it matters: Reserve targets and the size of the district's rainy-day funds affect the district's financial flexibility and long-term planning. The move to a nonpublic session indicates the committee intended to discuss matters the board determined to be appropriate for closed session under state statutes identified at the meeting.
No budget appropriation or amendment was adopted in public at the March 24 meeting; the discussion provided guidance and figures for further consideration.
