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Board approves seven budget transfers after objection over recreation custodian funding
Summary
Stafford Springs officials approved seven budget transfers to reconcile year-to-date shortfalls and reassign grant revenue; one member said they would oppose a transfer funding custodial services for recreational programs but the package passed by voice vote.
The Stafford Springs meeting on the evening showed the town moving to approve seven budget transfers intended to close midyear shortfalls and reconcile interdepartmental expenses. A motion to accept the transfers “as they are stated here” was moved and seconded; members then voted by voice and the motion carried, with at least one board member registering opposition to a transfer tied to recreation custodial services.
The transfers package covers multiple departmental needs identified in the town’s year-to-date budget-to-actual review. Officials said the transfers had been reviewed by the Board of Selectmen prior to presentation and that the signatures on the standardized form will be added before future submissions. One contested item was a custodial-services transfer (about $5,120 plus an additional $5,000 invoice held for approval) that funds school custodians who cover outside basketball programs supported by the town. A board member argued those outside programs should better manage scheduling or cover custodial costs; another member said the issue was largely a scheduling problem.
Board members discussed procedure and transparency as part of the vote. The chair confirmed the board will standardize transfer forms to include Selectmen signatures before transfers come forward. The voice vote recorded both in favor and opposed responses; the transcript did not include a roll-call tally or the names attached to each vote. The board also approved an additional appropriation: a Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services grant of $1,971 that increases both revenue and the social-services individual counseling expense line; that grant transfer was moved, seconded and approved by voice vote.
Votes at a glance • Motion: Approve seven budget transfers as presented (includes a custodial-services transfer for recreation programs). Outcome: approved by voice vote; at least one opposed. Specific vote tallies and individual vote names: not specified in the record. Notes: The custodial-services transfer drew explicit dissent; board members said the item reflects a scheduling and program-funding policy issue rather than a bookkeeping error.
The board closed the transfers agenda item and moved on to other budget and operational items, including capital maintenance and debt-service lines.
