Butte City Finance and Budget Committee approves expenditure list, reviews tenant refunds after building sale

The Butte City Finance and Budget Committee approved an expenditure list transcribed as "911,37947" and reviewed a set of budget transfers at its April 8, 2026, meeting, and staff explained a refund process for tenants after the sale of the Business Development Center.

Director Hassler said the committee’s payment to the Belmont Senior Citizen Center reflects an existing contract funded by levied mills and that the center "just draw[s] a 12th of it every month to assist in their operations." Commissioner O'Neal had asked about claim 7991 on page 89, citing the ledger entry as $6,337 and asking what "the draw down 12 months" meant.

Commissioner Shay flagged a Northwestern Energy bill for the Business Development Center and said he checked billing dates to confirm the charge fell in a period before the building's closing (he cited a Feb. 27 closing). Committee members asked whether claims were processed on the same check run and whether refunds or adjustments were needed because of the sale; Director Hassler said the affected tenants — including DPHHS occupants — had prepaid rent through the end of the year and "we needed to refund that directly to um those tenants and then have them reissue their payment to the new owners instead of us paying the new owners," calling the refund a cleaner administrative approach.

The committee discussed several budget transfers presented by staff: an amount transcribed as $820 for TIFFID publicity and chamber-report overages; $300 in the URA to cover unexpected customer-support costs from GMS; $15 from the general fund for superintendent conference dues; $8,000 from the general fund for the sheriff's office to purchase two replacement radar guns and a replacement laptop for Mickey Bolton (the transcript allocates $1,000 to the laptop and $7,000 to the radar guns); $3,000 in CDBG neighborhood improvement funds to cover a negative balance for the "BU aging at home" program; and $100 from finance and budget central admin services for an air purifier. No separate roll-call votes on these transfers are recorded in the transcript.

A motion to approve the expenditure list as of April 8, 2026, "in the amount of 911,37947" was made and seconded; the chair called for the vote and the motion passed 4–0. The record shows Commissioners Thatcher, O'Neal, Shay and Walker present and voting in favor; Commissioners Bole and Olri were absent and excused. With no further business, the chair adjourned the meeting.

The meeting covered routine financial oversight items; staff provided clarifications about contract payments and administrative refunds tied to a recent property sale. The transcript includes some numeric and spelling inconsistencies (see clarifying details).