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Finance committee flags audits, grant dependency and administrative charges as obstacles to budgeting
Summary
Members discussed audits blocking grant funds (mention of an MCEP grant of about $314,000), ARPA accounting complexity delaying CPA work, WEX card charges of $54/month split across funds, and that JC, the newly elected treasurer, is handling invoices; the committee agreed to wait for a draft budget before further planning.
The Finance committee discussed how outstanding audits are delaying access to grant funds and hampering budgeting. The Chair said the committee has grants that depend on completing audits and cited an MCEP grant amount "for $314,000," adding that the figure was recollected with some uncertainty.
A staff member described ongoing accounting complexities stemming from ARPA allocations in 2020–2021, saying the state repeatedly changed reporting requirements and that those shifts have left many communities and CPAs behind on audit work. The staff member explained that the accounting for ARPA-funded expenses has been time-consuming because different entities allocated funds differently, which increased CPA workload and delayed final audits.
The staff member also walked the committee through administrative charges for the fleet WEX cards. "The WEX company charges us $54 a month," the staff member said, and explained they split that charge across funds ("I split 6 ways") so the per-fund charge varies. The committee discussed backups and recent equipment (an MDIU unit) that arrived last week.
The Chair identified "JC" as the newly elected treasurer who brought invoices and will handle invoice processing going forward. Committee members agreed to wait until a draft budget is available before planning and to place meeting information and budget documents on the website for public access. No formal committee action to change audit timing or to reallocate funds was recorded in the transcript.
