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Finance panel urges swift staffing fix for town accountant as free‑cash certification looms
Summary
Committee members urged the town to expand the part‑time assistant in the accounting/treasury office to at least 32 hours to meet payroll and a Sept. 30 free‑cash certification deadline after recent resignations and temporary consultant unavailability.
Halifax — Finance Committee members told the town administrator on July 13 they want a funding plan to expand the assistant role in the accounting office to at least 32 hours a week to ensure payroll continuity and meet a September 30 target for free‑cash certification.
Town Administrator Steve Solvo and the town accountant, Lindsay, said the office lost staff in the treasury department and is operating at limited capacity; payroll consumes a large share of the office workload. An outside accounting consultant who had been leading free‑cash certification is temporarily unavailable due to a family emergency, and staff said another consultant (Bill Rowe) is assisting on Thursdays but is not positioned to provide leadership for certification.
"Our minimum need right now is about 32 hours a week," Solvo said of the assistant role, adding that the town must identify funding before advertising to avoid creating an unfunded salary obligation. Committee members agreed and asked staff to bring a compliant funding plan, to advertise at the funded level if approved, and to identify interim consultant coverage if the current lead remains unavailable.
The committee emphasized that timely staffing is critical to meet fiscal deadlines and to provide transparency for the certification process of any one‑time turnbacks from the schools.
