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Yarmouth finance committee approves two intra-budget transfers, discusses using vacancy savings to manage repairs
Summary
The Yarmouth Finance Committee voted to approve two transfers — $27,000 from parks wages to professional/technical services and $30,000 from highways wages to repairs — and debated the town practice of keeping vacant positions funded to preserve management flexibility.
The Yarmouth Finance Committee voted unanimously March 12 to approve two intra-budget transfers to cover work this fiscal year, and members discussed the town’s practice of leaving vacant positions funded to retain flexibility.
The committee approved a $27,000 transfer from the parks full‑time wages line to the professional and technical services line to fund mandated management plans needed by the Department of Public Works. The motion passed on a roll‑call vote: John (Aye), Nate (Aye), George (Aye), Bob (Aye), Rafael (Aye) and the committee chair (Aye). The motion’s second was recorded as Mr. Perkins.
The committee also approved a $30,000 transfer from highway full‑time wages to repairs and maintenance to cover several unforeseen building repairs, including plumbing problems at town facilities. That motion carried on a roll‑call vote with the same six members voting Aye.
Jennifer, the finance director, explained the broader rationale: budgeted wage lines remain available when positions go unfilled so managers can reassign funds where needed rather than returning them to free cash. “We do budget for positions…if we find that we can’t find somebody and say the position’s been open for a year or two … we don’t want to decrease that budget because that just takes away from our flexibility,” she said. She described several recent examples — difficulty hiring CDL‑licensed employees for highway work, an unfilled economic development director post and a benefits administrator who left the town shortly after hire — that prompted the practice.
Committee members asked whether departments actively post vacancies and whether the town considers contracting as an alternative to hiring. Jennifer said HR staff maintain job postings aggressively and that contracting is considered on a case‑by‑case basis when recruitment fails.
The committee’s discussion distinguished three outcomes: the approvals were formal committee actions; the finance director framed the budget practice as ongoing managerial direction; and members requested continued reporting on vacancies and recruitment strategies.
The votes conclude the committee’s review of the two transfers; no additional appropriations were requested and the moves were described as internal budget adjustments to “make that line item whole.”
