GREENFIELD — The Ways and Means Committee passed a series of recommendations Monday night to reduce the mayor’s proposed $47 million Fiscal Year 2017 operating budget by more than $189,000, which will go before a Town Council public hearing Wednesday night.

The cuts came primarily from the Department of Public Works, public safety and education budgets, and were proposed by Town Council President Brickett Allis and Vice President Isaac Mass.

There was debate during the meeting about whether the proposed reductions were too nit-picky, and Precinct 5 Councilor Robert Wainstein said several times that it seemed like the intent behind the amendments was to micromanage departments. Allis and Mass disagreed, saying pennies add up and the goal was to reduce the tax rate by using free cash — once it’s certified — to backfill any additional requests.

“This is our job,” Alllis said. “We are fiduciarily responsible for looking at every aspect of this budget in depth.”

He said he expects the town to have about $2 million in free cash, which will be certified by the state in November.

“The total reductions proposed by Councilor Allis and myself represent less than one-half of 1 percent of the operating budget,” Mass said. “They represent less than 7 percent of the certified free cash. … When the tax rate is set, it’s set on the budget we adopt. Once free cash is certified, that money is available to appropriate without affecting the tax rate.”

The committee voted to recommend cutting $81,000 from the mayor’s proposed DPW budget, which came primarily from snow and ice removal. Allis and Mass said this reduction will allow the town to reset its minimum snow and ice figure — which continues to increase year after year — as towns can only deficit spend in this department above the limits of Proposition 2½ if they haven’t cut in the previous year.

Also recommended was reducing the public safety budget by $73,800, which Mass explained would include cutting $50,000 for a dispatch manager position that no longer exists and eliminating a half-time building inspector position that is currently vacant. Line items for police accessories and police vehicle accessories were also reduced, as Allis said only a small fraction of each were spent this fiscal year.

Mayor William Martin said however, that the dispatch manager’s salary was not included in the FY16 operating budget and therefore is not there to be cut. He added that reducing the line items for police accessories also removes the autonomy of department leaders to quickly adjust to changing issues.

Precinct 8 Councilor Ashli Stempel said she was hesitant to support the recommended reductions.

“I’m of the camp where the police need more, not less, in order to protect our community,” she said.

She also questioned whether Mass was familiar with what exactly the building inspectors do, saying, “If you understand the scope of their work than you would have more clout in your decision to cut the position.”

Mass said although it seems counterintuitive, reducing the number of building inspector positions from two and a half to two would actually encourage productivity.

His proposal to recommend cutting $18,000 from the education budget for trash removal for the Greenfield Public Schools was also approved during the meeting. Although the schools are in the midst of a three-year contract with Waste Management, Mass said the reduction would send a message that Town Council is serious about the town and school department cooperating, as the schools are the only department that do not have their trash removed by the DPW.

Superintendent Jordana Harper said there is a fee for breaking the contract with Waste Management, which has yet to be determined, and having trash removed by the DPW could be more expensive.

“There is some sense that the DPW’s cost for the same service would be in fact higher than is currently being contracted through Waste Management,” she said.

The committee also recommended cutting $10,000 from the financial administration budget for an anticipated retirement of the finance director. The reduction represents savings in compensation from a new hire at a lower rate, however the current finance director has not officially announced her intent to retire.

Recommended cuts and reductions were also made to the Town Council, Conservation Commission, Disability Access Commission and Culture and Recreation budgets.

Town Council will vote on the entire annual operating budget, sewer and water enterprise funds and revolving funds Wednesday at 6 p.m. in the GCTV-15 studio, 393 Main St.

You can reach Aviva Luttrell at:
aluttrell@recorder.com
or 413-772-0261, ext. 268
On Twitter: @AvivaLuttrell