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Brentwood trustees review cemetery budget and perpetual-care accounting; retirement line and maintenance funding to be clarified
Summary
Trustees reviewed the cemetery budget, discussed an erroneous retirement deduction line, the process for paying flowers and mowing from perpetual-care income, and the need to shift budget lines or request selectboard assistance for land maintenance.
Cemetery trustees on June 5 reviewed their operating and trust accounts and discussed accounting steps to address a retirement line that may not apply to the part-time superintendent, the late receipt of a mowing bill that affected year-to-year accounting, and a rise in flower costs.
Trustees said a New Hampshire retirement deduction was included in their budget spreadsheet but that the superintendent went from full time to part time in March and should not be receiving retirement contributions from the cemetery’s budget. The superintendent said she would check with Jillian (town staff) and Andrea about correcting the retirement line. Trustees agreed the unspent appropriation could remain in the cemetery budget and be reallocated if necessary.
On perpetual care and the flower program, trustees described the reimbursement flow: the superintendent purchases flowers, submits receipts to Jillian, the town pays and the town then works with the trustees of trust and the fiduciary company to transfer funds from the trust back to the town. Trustees reported flower prices have risen to $6.75 per piece. They also said mowing invoices sometimes come after the fiscal cutoff—the trustees identified a December 10 deadline for getting worksheets to trustees of trust so the fiduciary company can include mowing in that year’s accounting.
The meeting included an inventory of accounts and procedures: trustees noted perpetual-care principal cannot be spent, only income; capital reserve funds come from lot sales and are used for infrastructure such as paving and tree removal; and the fiduciary company requires precise paper trails for all trust withdrawals. Julie (who maintains worksheets) and other trustees described ongoing improvements to spreadsheets and recordkeeping to ensure funds are tracked and reimbursed properly.
Trustees did not take any formal budget vote at the meeting but discussed administrative directions: the superintendent will confirm retirement deductions with town staff, and trustees will ask Andrea about moving budget lines (for example, shifting an amount from FICA/retirement into land maintenance if allowed). They also noted the land-maintenance line was cut from $2,000 to $1,000 in the current year as part of across-the-board reductions and that the select board indicated funds could be found if a true need arises.
