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Canterbury Board of Finance presses volunteer fire company for clearer accounting around $196,450 request
Summary
At its meeting the Canterbury Board of Finance questioned the volunteer fire company's accounting and reserve balances, seeking itemized financials and reconciliation between private EMS funds and town‑funded lines tied to a $196,450 net budget request.
The Canterbury Board of Finance pressed the volunteer fire company for more transparent accounting and clearer separation of town-funded and privately held reserves as officials reviewed a net budget request of $196,450.
The discussion unfolded during a prolonged review of documents submitted by the fire company. Board members asked for an itemized expense history, monthly profit-and-loss reports and a bank-balance disclosure so the board can confirm whether town funds are being used appropriately and whether privately raised money is being held in reserves rather than returned to the general fund.
The fire company representatives described how their budget is structured: gross operating totals include anticipated revenues and EMS-related receipts, and those offsets reduce the town-side ask. Sarah, representing the volunteer fire company, told the board that EMS revenue and donations are tracked separately and that some funds are held in money-market accounts as reserves for major apparatus or emergencies. She said the company tries to “utilize all the funds that are given to us in one way, shape or form” and that they keep emergency reserves for catastrophic repairs, ambulance purchases and other high-cost items.
Board members repeatedly asked for more detail. One member noted an apparent duplication: $36,000 in the CIP for turnout gear alongside an $18,000 turnout-gear request in the operating budget. Town staff and the company agreed to reconcile whether large, planned purchases belong under CIP and whether smaller, routine replacements should be carried in an equipment-repair or maintenance line.
Officials also pressed the company on recruitment and retention spending, pointing to a $9,000 line for an annual dinner, $1,300 for a Christmas party and $500 for a toy drive. Fire representatives said the dinner is meant to recognize volunteers and that ticket sales and other fundraising offset some costs; they also said volunteer-run fundraisers have declined (for example, roast‑beef dinners can’t be held because of potable-water restrictions). The board asked the company to provide prior-year actuals showing how revenue from those events was recorded and whether proceeds were returned to the company’s operating account or to general reserves.
The board emphasized it wants the same account-level transparency from the fire company that it expects from other municipal departments. Members requested monthly P&L statements, a current balance-sheet or list of reserve accounts and supporting invoices or bank statements where appropriate. The fire representatives agreed to work with the board to make that documentation available and to bring more detailed financials to the next meetings.
Next steps: the board asked town staff to facilitate delivery of the fire company’s monthly and annual financial statements; staff and the company also agreed to reconcile the turnout-gear/CIP entries and to clarify which line items are EMS‑restricted revenue.
