001We're live. >> Morning. This is the special meeting of the finance committee. It's Thursday, May 21st at 8 a.m. Uh we'll start the meeting with a review of the April 2026 financial report. Rich, >> uh so this is the financial report through April. We are showing the positive balance of 175,825. Uh this is a decrease from the prior month of 141,22. Uh so the changes do include a reduction to the reimbursement rate for excess cost. Uh that is a reduction of 88,970. Uh based on the March 1st filings from all districts in Connecticut, the reimbursement rate was dropped from 68% to 66.78%. Um we do have a deficit in long-term subs. Um there is a substitute for an administrator out on maternity leave. Um we're at $31,000 uh salary savings of 26,686. Uh we did
002have to move that salary savings from ELP over to long-term subs for increasing costs in long-term subs. Uh public tuition is uh down $10,422 and those are uh price increases from um and home placement. Uh gate receipts are short just by $271 and that's just less uh tickets sold. Uh the adult education cooperative we have with Stanford came in less than budget by $500. Uh some clubs and council uh adjustments for $547. uh the board of ed retreat facilitator uh that was approved earlier in the year does not look like it's happening this uh fiscal year so that releases 5,000 and unemployment insurance is less than anticipated by 10,100. Uh overall the general education RC's are a positive 25,193 and special education RC's are a positive 150,632. Uh just going through the RC's real quickly
003as I mentioned RC16 consultant services has a positive balance of 5,000. That is the board of ed retreat facilitator. Um RC18 uh long-term subs does show that deficit of $31,000 and that's due to coverage for an assistant principal. Uh RC23, uh Darian Summer School and continuing education. Um that cooperative with Stanford public schools is $500 less. Um RC24, uh tuition public school shows positive balance of 4,322, but that's $10,000 less than the prior month. And again, that is for students attending the Stanford public schools that came in higher than anticipated. And then the biggest change obviously is the change in nexus cost. Um we did include the estimated revenues. We should be getting that final reimbursement rate um within the next few days as it usually comes right around Memorial Day. Um but the final
004reimbursement rate is 66.78%. And then RC25 fixed as I mentioned unemployment insurance is less than um budget by 10,000 due to um less claims um filed. is a one. >> Joanna, >> um, can we talk about the salary savings again? Um, so you just said that that was you're moving that over to the 30 for the transfer. >> No, so the salary savings uh was salary savings from a an ELP that was hired late and um ELP that was hired late. So we have escalating costs within long-term subs as we've hired more retired teachers to fill in. So, the rate for a retired teacher is typically higher than you would get for a typical long-term sub. And so, that's just covering the growing cost of uh long-term subs. The $31,000 is different. That is for
005a long-term sub for an administrator who's out from attorney leave. >> Okay. So, all the salary savings that we're losing are because of long-term subs. Correct. >> Okay. And then the um the substitute um long-term administrator substitute. Do you which is that? Can you say which school that's at or >> uh it's Royal. >> Royal. Okay. >> And it was expected. >> Um so we didn't plan on it. We didn't know the individual was going to be pregnant. Um but we typically don't budget for uh administrators for long-term subs because we just typically don't have them, right? >> It's relatively rare. Um, but because we do have escalating costs and long-term subs, uh, the account just can't absorb it, which is why we're recommending the transfer. >> Um, I just have a couple quick ones
006on the grants. The idea grant, is that that's what we expected it to be or? >> Yes, >> it is. Okay. And same question on the mental health for the wellness coordinator. That's >> so that is a multiple year grant. And so that's just the last year of that grant. >> It is. Okay. Phil, do you have any other questions? >> Interpret the last page one variation there if the uh initiates the resolution possible special education related services board exceeded. >> Oh. Uh so excess cost reimbursement is something that every district in Connecticut submits. And so to be reimbursed uh the district has to observe the first four and a half uh times your per pupil. So for Darian it's per pupil is about 26,000. And so any cost above that amount you get reimbured
007by the state. Uh it is tiered based on town wealth. And so there's three tiers. Um the excess cost budget by the state has never been fully funded. And so when all the claims come in from all districts across the state, the state sees how much money they have in their budget, how much are the claims, and then they basically apply a haircut against what everybody's going to get reimbursed. Um and so the first um announcement is in December after your December 1st filing. And so when you file, you have actual expenditures up until about like mid November and then everything else is in forecast. And then you file again in March 1st. So then you pick up more actuals up until about early March 1st. Um and then everybody submits again and usually the
008pot uh the expenses across the state go up but the pot obviously remains flat and so then the reimbursement rate that the state gives goes down a little bit. Um and then that final reimbursement comes to the districts in end of May. So within a couple days >> and that and it comes to the district as a as a grant. >> It comes in as a revenue that's uh received. And so in RC 24 you see a contra expense or revenue that's called excess cost reimbursement. And so that's revenue to help offset the total cost of special education. >> But uh I guess my question then is I I see it says untapped uncapped entitlement of uh 3.4 mill. >> So if excess cost was reimbursed at 100% by the state Oh, that's where we're
009getting. >> We would get 3.4 million. Okay. >> Um as our reimbursement, but because it is capped by the state because the state doesn't have enough money to reimburse every district 100%. That's why we're getting less. that that answer I I I yeah I understood the thank you thank you >> Rich just a general question do you know um sort of came up when I look at this other grant do you know and if you don't know the answer maybe come back and what um percent of our budget is funded by federal stuff and then >> uh so f so federal is IDA and title two um so you're looking at about a million dollars is federal >> that's the only thing that we get federalized >> federalized So we used to get title one
010a few years ago. Um that went away as the number of students or number of children I shouldn't say students but the number of children in Darianne who are under the poverty level uh reduced. Um but for the federal so it's about a million dollars. Um for the state um it's that couple million dollars in excess cost money that we get. And then you see some of the ARPA grant like the wellness um coordinator grant. Um the drip grant is a is a state grant. Those are all state grants. And really the rest is um from the town. >> So it's really like about 2%. >> Yeah. About >> is not funded by the town. >> Correct. >> Okay. >> Wow. That's >> I wonder how that compares to the rest of the state. >>
011Uh so it compares similar to our DURB. So like New Kanan, Wilton, Westport. If you look at communities like uh Norwalk or Stanford, the amount is much more. Yeah. Um the state does give the town what's called exc um educational cost sharing grant which goes directly to the town which is intended to reduce property taxes for education. Right. >> So Darien gets about a half a million but that sits on the town's side of the budget um as >> Yeah. I would include that though like if we're getting something even just >> so on the town side of the budget for educational purposes it's about a half a million dollars for our operating expense. >> So maybe it's like two and a quart% >> about. So it's not a significant amount. Um and that's really
012based on town wealth. Um that's how the state calculates it. >> Um and then from a capital perspective, we get money reimbured for construction projects um through the state which is about 20% of eligible expenses. >> Got it. Okay. >> Um very helpful. Any other questions? No. >> Uh budget transfers. >> So there is one transfer we're recommending for approval that is for $31,000 again for that long-term substitute for administrator. We are recommending taking the funds from the savings and athletic transportation that we talked about last month. Uh the savings and unemployment insurance and then the board of ed retreat facilitator that will be used. >> Questions on that? Sounds good. All good. >> Okay. I think we move to public comment. >> There are no members of the public to comment. Okay.