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Budget committee hears finance staffing, audit timeline and software gaps ahead of 2027 process
Summary
Committee members were told interim finance consultants are focused on completing the town audit, expected summer–early fall; staff and software constraints limit ad-hoc reporting and a roughly $150,000 software upgrade was not included in the budget, prompting calls for a work session and better communications to help the public understand budget trade-offs.
Wolfeboro’s Budget Committee on April 20 raised concerns about finance staffing, the town audit timeline and the absence of a planned finance-software upgrade from the current budget as members prepared for the 2027 budget cycle.
Select Board representative Brian Deshaies reported the town is using two finance consultants—one at the financial-director level and one at the accounting level—whose primary focus is completing the town audit, which is expected to finish in the summer or early fall. Committee members described the finance function as under-resourced and said interviews for permanent finance staff are underway.
Justin Brown asked about the status of a finance-software initiative started before the previous Town Manager’s departure. Members were told the town remains on its current system, MUNIS/MuniSmart, and that an estimated upgrade cost of about $150,000 was not built into the current budget. Paul O’Brien noted that current reporting often relies on extracting data into spreadsheets, limiting the committee’s ability to request additional ad-hoc analysis. Staff confirmed a monthly actuals-versus-budget report can be produced but that staffing and software constraints limit more frequent or bespoke reports.
Committee members agreed to plan a dedicated work session to determine presentation format, and discussed forming a communications subcommittee to help the public understand the budget and counter misinformation. Bobbi Boudman suggested the communications group be chaired by Justin Brown and return recommendations to the full committee.
The committee recorded these staffing and system limitations for follow-up and requested staff and Select Board representatives return with updated staffing status and any recommended software funding options.
