by Brian Keaney

The Town’s fiscal forecast looks bleak, but finance officials are getting a jump on the planning process to help ease the pain.  State aid could be cut 15% to 20% next year,  but some say the cuts could actually improve the way Town operates.

“I see moments like this as opportunities,” Town Administrator Bill Keegan said.  “Quite honestly, I see this as a way to improve the way we do business.”

Keegan made his comments at a meeting of the Finance Committee on Wednesday night where members discussed ways in which the Town could cut costs.  Suggestions ranged from not filling vacancies when they occur – a practice that is already happening – to fundamentally changing the way budgets are produced.

There was widespread support among Committee members to allow attrition to slim the Town’s payroll.  They suggested that the Town use technology and existing staff members, some of whom may have seen their jobs made easier by improved technology, to cover any gaps.

Other ideas included a reorganization and consolidation of some town departments, an idea Keegan alluded to during a recent Selectmen’s meeting.  While he was quick to qualify his comments as “for discussion purposes only,” Keegan suggested that the Parks Department, the Department of Public Works, and the grounds staff at the Endicott Estate and perhaps others could all be joined into a single department.

The Town Charter calls for a Parks and Recreation Commission to exercise “all powers, duties and trusts which are conferred or imposed on park commissions” under state law.  The Charter may have amended in order to place the Parks Department under the DPW.  Unrelatedly, several Selectmen and volunteers are seeking signatures to form a charter commission at the next Town Election to review the Town’s charter.

Keegan proposed several questions for the Committee, but said that they should also be used as part of a community-wide discussion.  He said that the more feedback he got on “what is reasonable and what is not” made it easier for him to pursue some options.

“What’s the priority,” Keegan asked.  “Is there a better way to do business?  Can we improve upon on how we are providing services currently?  Are there opportunities to consolidate operations to further reduce costs, or to at least stop costs from rising?” 

The Town had already taken steps in this direction with trash and streetlights, Keegan said, and was looking for further opportunities.  He added that each of the new trash barrels has a serial number on it, so if one goes missing it can be tracked.

Displaying some political savvy, Keegan added that any changes or consolidations were bound to upset some.

“Everyone is going to have their ox gored,” Keegan said, “but we have to face reality that we are going to have to do things differently.  It’s not going to be business as usual.”

Keegan also proposed changing the design of the health plan coverage Town employee’s receive, as well as sharing the costs of the plans, but added that it would have an impact on collective bargaining.  Joining the state’s Group Insurance Commission is another option being explored.  The idea has been considered before, but it was found that the current consortium the Town is currently a part of had lower rates.

Committee member Sue Carney suggested moving to zero-based budgeting.  Each year under zero-based budgeting every department must justify every dollar they are requesting.  In essence, each year they begin with no budget and build it from scratch, rather than keeping all existing programs and personnel and adding incremental costs to it. 

Carney said that it would be a useful thought exercise to engage in, even if the actual budget was not put together in that fashion.

“There has to be justification,” Carney said.  “Take a small department with five people.  Those five people may have been there before there were any computerized services.  Does that mean that there is a need for five people” today?

Fellow Committee member Bill McKinney supported Carney in the push for zero-based budgeting.  He added that the Town should look at what the Town does currently and see what it should cost, rather than simply trying to fill a gap between revenues and expenditures.

Additional ideas from Keegan included outsourcing some operations and regionalizing others.  Keegan said that regional boards of health, animal control, public safety dispatch, and even finance operations may make sense.  He also said he would look to reduce redundancies between the schools and the general government side of the Town.

Mike Butler, the chairman of the Board of Selectmen, commented that the Town was going to try and budget funds next year for a consultant to look at how the public safety departments are organized. 

Butler suggested that the consultant may be asked to take a regional look at how public safety services are provided.  For example, he said perhaps a fire truck in Islington could cover part of Dedham, or Dedham could cover part of Westwood, so both towns don’t have to buy the same expensive equipment.  He added that it may not be necessary for fire engines to respond to all medical emergencies as well.

The state cut local aide last year as well.  Serendipitously, the size of the cut was almost exactly the same size as the new growth brought in by Legacy Place.  Their payments have avoided the need for layoffs so far, but it may not be enough to sustain a further cut from the state.

Finance Director Mariellen Murphy said she would run some numbers and examine if several other models might work, and Keegan closed on an optimistic note.

“People see this as a terrible time,” said Keegan.  “It’s not really terrible.  It just means you have to refocus your attention and decide how you want to do things.”