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CFO reports widened operating expenses, community‑school revenue dip and Munis audit finding
Summary
Chief Financial Officer Martin Angelou presented the third‑quarter budget update showing an $11.99 million year‑over‑year increase in expenses, a small revenue shortfall in the Nantucket Community School, a school‑lunch deficit, and repeated audit findings tied to the Munis accounting system and two omitted bond authorization numbers.
Chief Financial Officer Martin Angelou told the committee the district’s third‑quarter financial reports show operating pressures across payroll and maintenance, an increase in expenses compared with the prior year and a set of audit findings that require follow‑up.
Angelou said the district has logged about $11,990,000 more in expenses at the same point this fiscal year than at the same point in FY24. He said payroll increases were expected because of contractual obligations but that operating budgets have been strained; payroll now represents a slightly larger share of the budget than last year. Angelou credited a $450,000 transfer the committee approved at a prior meeting to reduce an otherwise larger deficit and noted a Special Education reserve the district established in February 2018 has helped offset pressures.
On program revenues, Angelou reported the Nantucket Community School is about $14,000 behind year‑to‑date, driven by a roughly $32,000 drop in pool revenues and about a $68,000 drop in extended‑day revenues compared with the prior year. He explained that some programs were reclassified this year (for example, some revenues moved from extended day to the summer/sports camp revolver), a technical shift that affects year‑to‑date comparisons. The CFO said summer‑camp receipts that post on July 1 are held separately and will appear in the next fiscal year’s accounting.
Angelou said the school‑lunch program currently operates at a deficit of roughly $92,000, larger than the $65,000 deficit at the same time last year. He said the district is working with Chartwells (the food service manager) and that the program faces uncertainty in federal reimbursement flows: “We operate on month by month. We submit for federal and state reimbursements immediately when possible. And, we're hopeful to close the year.” Angelou said the district hopes to use the lunch‑program fund balance rather than general fund money to close any shortfall.
Angelou also reviewed the district audit and two categories of findings. Under the new DESE audit format, the district again received a compliance finding because the town and district accounting structures (Munis) are not aligned with DESE’s preferred chart of accounts; Angelou said this has been an ongoing finding for several years. He described the technical challenge of migrating or reconciling historic account structures so a replacement system retains the district’s financial history. Angelou also said two bond authorization amounts were omitted from the fiscal‑year report because the treasurer’s numbers were not provided in time; he said he has worked with town treasury and expects the omission will be corrected in next year’s submission.
Committee members asked about pool revenues, summer‑camp collections and the community‑school subsidy from the town; Angelou said discussions are underway with town finance and with the community‑school management team, and he indicated the town appropriation conversation will continue for FY27. The committee did not vote on any immediate budget adjustments at this meeting.
