GILL — A Special Town Meeting that was originally slated for Monday, June 29, has been canceled because, due to discrepancies with the town’s numbers, the state Department of Revenue has not certified free cash to be transferred into the fiscal year 2027 budget.
During a joint Selectboard and Finance Committee meeting on Thursday night, Town Administrator Ray Purington announced that Gill’s certified free cash won’t be available in time for the scheduled meeting. With the lack of free cash before the next fiscal year begins on Wednesday, July 1, the town will not have free cash available for its upcoming budget and will need to fill any gaps using stabilization funds.
Purington explained that the problem stems from “variances” between the numbers kept by the Accountant’s Office and the Treasurer’s Office. The Department of Revenue notified Gill that the differences are of a “magnitude that needs to get ironed out” before certification. Purington said the town is meeting with representatives from the Department of Revenue on July 1 to discuss the matter further.
Some of the issues relate to errors made in accounting software that have been difficult to correct, software gaps between the Accountant’s Office and the Treasurer’s Office, and the learning curve associated with the new town accountant coming into the position.
The initial plan announced at the June 8 Annual Town Meeting was to hold the Special Town Meeting at the end of the month, with hopes that free cash would be certified by then, and transfers to stabilization accounts could move forward. The $2.65 million budget relies heavily on stabilization this year, which helped prevent a Proposition 2½ override.
Greenfield is facing a similar issue, with the Department of Revenue not certifying its free cash and retained earnings due to bookkeeping errors in the city’s Accounting Department and Treasurer/Collector’s Office. The city must complete an audit and balance the books, and until this is done, City Council cannot approve any capital projects that would be paid for using those funds.
Riverside Municipal Building visit
Thursday’s discussion between the Selectboard and Finance Committee then switched to how to plan for a joint visit to the Riverside Municipal Building this summer to discuss the building’s future. A Monday, July 27, date has been tentatively scheduled for that tour.
