Voters OK transfer of surplus funds

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BEACON FALLS — Residents approved a resolution last week to transfer $93,700 from the general fund to pay for capital projects.

First Selectman Christopher Bielik said the 14 residents who showed up to the town meeting on May 20 voted unanimously in favor of the transfer.

The money will be used for 12 capital projects, including $15,000 to replace the computer server at Town Hall, $13,500 for repairs at the police station, and $9,000 for a flail motor attachment for the public work’s mower.

The transfer request comes after voters approved three separate resolutions to transfer $850,000 from the general fund surplus on April 16. This included $500,000 for road repairs, up to $100,000 to completely renovate the parking lot at Town Hall, and $250,000 to the contingency fund for the wastewater treatment plan.

At the start of the 2013-14 fiscal year, the town’s general fund balance stood at $2.1 million. The fund balance grew to about $3.1 million by the end of the 2013-14 fiscal year. The increase was due to a combination of many factors, including aggressive collection of back taxes and some positions being left vacant.

According to Bielik, the 12 items were originally included in the budget. However, both the Board of Selectmen and Board of Finance recommended taking them out of the budget and using the surplus from the general fund, Bielik said.

“We figured using budget surplus would be the right thing to do rather than keep it in the budget. It’s one-time revenue used for one-time expenditures,” Bielik said.

Bielik said the town does not have any more transfers from the general fund planned for this fiscal year.