Budget amendments eliminate fund deficit

Bloomfield Township Finance Director Jason Theis presented township trustees with budget amendments for fiscal year 2019-2020 which indicated that rather than having an almost $2.8 million public safety deficit, cuts to the budget indicate that not only will there be no deficit, there will actually be a budget surplus, but trustees tabled the amendments in order to get more information.

The fiscal year runs from April 1 to March 31 each year.

Theis said the March 31, 2020 budget was approved in March 2019 with a deficit that would reduce the public safety fund balance by $2.8 million, and rather than having a deficit, after approximately $4 million in cuts the last several months, the “public safety fund is projected to be under budget, with no reduction to its fund balance, and will be able to make a $1.5 million contribution to the OPEB (other post employment benefits) trust. There will be no reductions to fund balance.”

He said the road fund is also projected to be well under budget.

The budget amendment recommendation was for $1 million from the general fund balance to the general fund.

“This will allow the general fund to provide additional support to the public safety fund. It will also allow both the general fund and public safety fund to make OPEB contributions totaling $2,000,000,” Theis said.

“I need more information on this. I can't vote to spend $2 million on OPEB if I don't know what jobs were put on hold,” trustee Dave Buckley stated.

“We've done that several times the last few weeks. If you had asked, we would have been able to give you the information,” supervisor Leo Savoie said. “I have no problem tabling. We will not have a budget study session until after the election (March 10), so we know what money we have to work with (for the next fiscal year).”

Trustees voted unanimously to table the budget amendments to get more information on the potential savings.