Finance board accepts June expenditure reports

Board of Finance · Meeting of July 20, 2026

Guilford's Board of Finance accepted June financial reports and marked member Rob Federici's resignation. The board unanimously approved a $10,798,928.28 Board of Education expenditure report and a $2,812,263 town government expenditure report, with a preliminary $2 million revenue surplus for the year. Board of Education finance official Linda Trudeau said three departing high-cost students saved the district "almost $900,000." Federici's last meeting prompted a 60-day clock for the Democratic Town Committee to nominate a replacement.

The board also reached consensus naming member Meghan Scanlon to a new medical insurance working group, and officials said the town's fiscal 2026 audit will begin September 21, a month earlier than last year.

In the full story:

• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report — 2,575 words

Source: the Board of Finance meeting of July 20, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript. It was corrected where it differed.

The Full Article

Public Forum and Minutes

No residents addressed the board during public forum. The board then approved two sets of minutes. The June 15, 2026 regular meeting minutes required a correction: Chair Michael Ayles said a dollar figure in item four had been mistakenly carried over from a warrant document and corrected it to the proper number. The vote passed 3-1, with member Meghan Scanlon abstaining. Minutes from the June 18 special meeting, at which the board set the fiscal year's mill rate at 28.40, a 2.73 percent increase consistent with what officials said had been promised to voters during budget season, passed 3-1 with member Jeffrey Beatty abstaining, having lost his connection before the vote.

Correspondence: Standing Building Committee and Police Facility Project

Background and stakes: The Standing Building Committee held three recent meetings, including a July 8 special session on the police department facility and program study, a project that had been postponed from May 27. Because that meeting was held in executive session, Ayles said the board could not discuss specifics.

The question before the body: Whether the Board of Finance had any outstanding questions on building committee business, including a prior fund transfer tied to the "Jones project."

Substantive content: Ayles disclosed that the Board of Selectmen has scheduled a Town Meeting for September 15 at 7:30 p.m. at Guilford High School to consider the proposed purchase of property connected to the police facility project. He said additional public information on the purchase, and likely on the broader project, would be released before that date, with a town staff member referred to as Matt expected to distribute materials after returning from vacation. A member who referenced "according to Cliff" said the earlier bonding transfer discussed at a prior meeting appeared sufficient to cover the Jones project, with no additional funding gaps anticipated. Ayles separately raised a message from a contact identified as Terry Fandella, asking Board of Finance members to confirm availability for a September 9 meeting at 6:30 p.m. at Guilford High School to review a school facility needs assessment conducted by a firm referred to in the discussion as Frier Architects. Ayles said he would survey members, including Elias Kabeche and Amy Earls, who were absent from Monday's meeting, before responding.

The deliberation: Discussion was brief. One member followed up on the Jones project funding question from the prior month's minutes; Ayles and others indicated no new concerns had surfaced.

Procedural steps and outcome: No vote was taken; this was an information item under correspondence.

Implications and what is next: Residents will have a direct opportunity to weigh in on the police facility property purchase at the September 15 Town Meeting, and on the school facility needs assessment at the September 9 session, both at Guilford High School.

Board of Education Report of Expenditures, June 2026

Background and stakes: State and town rules require the Board of Finance to review and accept monthly expenditure reports from the Board of Education as part of ongoing budget oversight.

The question before the body: Whether to accept the district's June 2026 expenditure and revenue report as presented.

Substantive content: Dick Hersh and Linda Trudeau, appearing for the Board of Education, reported June expenditures of $10,798,928.28, or 99.12 percent of budget, compared with 98.8 percent in the same month last year. Revenue totaled $41,150.20, split between $349.31 in non-resident tuition and $40,800.89 in Medicaid reimbursement. Trudeau noted employee benefit costs ran lower than the prior year partly because unvested pension contributions are returned to the district when employees leave before vesting. Capital spending ran higher than typical because tuition savings were redirected to deferred purchases of furniture and equipment; transportation costs ran above last year's percentage due to rising special-education transportation and driver costs.

Board members asked several line-item questions from the warrant. One member asked about remaining capital encumbrances exceeding half a million dollars; Trudeau said reconciliations next month would clarify how much would be spent, canceled, or returned, noting some unspent site-improvement funds would instead be redirected toward bathroom renovation work, including the girls' room, using grant and capital funds. Another member asked about nearly $90,000 spent at what the warrant listed as Chesure Fitness Zone, which Trudeau said funds occupational, physical, and speech therapy services, not a fitness facility in the conventional sense. Members also asked about consulting payments to Karen Gray for play-based learning professional development for principals, payments to Yale University School of Medicine tied to the Cedarhurst School pupil-services training program, a $595 charge from Nationwide Security Corp. for card-reader repairs at the Board of Education office, and an unfamiliar line item for "LENA" benefits, which Trudeau clarified was accident and long-term disability insurance for staff under contract, not board members.

Members also discussed the magnitude of tuition savings this year. Trudeau said three high-cost students, each costing the district nearly $300,000 annually, left the district mid-year — one moving out of town, one returning to district placement, and one graduating early — saving almost $900,000 that had not been anticipated when the budget was built. She added that five students aged out of the district's GTA program this year as well.

"There were three very expensive students, each one almost $300,000 each... those three alone saved us almost $900,000." — Linda Trudeau, Board of Education

The deliberation also touched on why the June figure appears unusually large compared with other months: Trudeau explained that teachers receive a substantial year-end salary payment in June, with no corresponding payroll in July and August.

Procedural steps and outcome: The board voted unanimously to accept the Board of Education's June 2026 expenditure report in the amount of $10,798,928.28.

Implications and what is next: The district expects to close the capital and tuition lines near zero by year's end, with any remaining savings transferred to reserve. A fuller reconciliation is expected next month.

Town Government Report of Expenditures, June 2026

Background and stakes: The board separately reviews town government's own monthly expenditure and revenue report, with June figures described as preliminary pending final-month closeout.

The question before the body: Whether to accept the town government's June 2026 expenditure report.

Substantive content: A town finance official identified in the meeting only as Mary Jane reported the town is running a preliminary $2 million revenue surplus for the fiscal year, driven mainly by $1.1 million in prior-year tax collections against a $390,000 budgeted figure. She said the finance and fire departments also ran revenue surpluses, the latter tied to increased emergency call volume. The town clerk and building department came in slightly under their FY26 revenue targets but still exceeded their FY25 budgeted amounts, reflecting budget increases; one member noted the town clerk's office no longer charges for temporary liquor licenses, altering that revenue line.

On expenditures, the town was overexpended by $170,000 overall, offset partly by $760,000 in outstanding purchase orders. Mary Jane said information technology and capital lines would be made whole with committed funds, and insurance and employee-benefit lines were awaiting pending departmental transfers. She flagged three lines likely to remain over budget at year's end: the fire department, over by $267,000 with $125,000 in purchase orders outstanding (an improvement from a $600,000 overage last year); the communications line, overspent because the town is paying for both its old and new phone systems during a transition expected to generate savings once complete; and town properties, overspent due to a fire hydrant fee increase that was not known at the time the budget was built. She said a second, larger hydrant increase for fiscal year 2027 had already been accounted for in next year's budget through offsetting reductions elsewhere.

One member asked about a $2,457 land-acquisition bond fund payment on the warrant; Mary Jane explained it was a one-time attorney payment tied to a bonded purchase, to be reimbursed from bond proceeds the following August.

On the town's self-insured medical plan, Mary Jane reported a $885,000 deficit for the year before applying a planned $750,000 draw from fund balance, leaving a net $365,000 surplus. She said the plan received $1.7 million in stop-loss reimbursements against a $1.3 million threshold for the year, with 43 covered members exceeding the $87,500 half-stop-loss mark and 16 members exceeding the $175,000 full threshold, two more than the prior month. Two of those 16 are no longer active on the plan, while four other members were approaching the $175,000 mark. She cited a small percentage of plan members as responsible for the bulk of high-cost claims, consistent with an explanation a vendor representative identified as Joe Spurgeon had given the board previously.

"We have a $2 million surplus on revenue for the year." — Mary Jane, town finance official

Procedural steps and outcome: The board voted unanimously to accept the town government's June 2026 expenditure report in the amount of $2,812,263.

Implications and what is next: Final-month figures and a fuller capital reconciliation are expected at next month's meeting.

Committee Reports and Old Business

The board noted it currently has no standing committees to report and nothing pending under old business; both items were disposed of without discussion.

Appointment to Medical Insurance Working Group

Background and stakes: The Board of Selectmen formed a medical insurance working group earlier the same day and asked the Board of Finance to name a representative.

The question before the body: Who would serve as the board's representative.

Substantive content: Ayles said member Meghan Scanlon had expressed clear interest in serving, and the board reached consensus without a formal vote to name her. Asked for the record who else would sit on the panel, Ayles said the Board of Selectmen side includes Jonathan Troda and Susan Rener, with a resident identified as Sandy Roof having also expressed interest; the Board of Education's representative was identified, with some uncertainty over the correct spelling, as "Delura"; and the staffing side would be represented by a town employee identified only as Mitch.

Procedural steps and outcome: Consensus reached; no roll-call vote taken.

Implications and what is next: Scanlon will represent the Board of Finance in working-group discussions on the town's medical insurance plan going forward.

New Business: Registrar of Voters Compensation, Member Resignation, Audit Update

Background and stakes: The board previously addressed registrar of voters stipends in 2024 but had not yet revisited how stipends interact with base salary, a discussion deferred because the FY27 budget needed to pass first.

The question before the body: What comparative data the board should request from town staff ahead of an August discussion on registrar of voters compensation; and separately, how to handle the resignation of board member Rob Federici.

Substantive content: Ayles said the board would take up registrar of voters salary and stipend structure in August and asked members what comparison data they wanted from a staff member identified as Mitch. Members requested comparable salary and stipend data by geography and population, data on which comparable towns pay a stipend versus folding it into salary, and the frequency of elections in comparable towns. Members noted that Guilford's use of a stipend had historically been uncommon among municipalities and discussed whether expanded early voting requirements might be increasing the prevalence of stipends statewide. Ayles said he would also seek input from two people referenced only as Gloria and Lisa who reportedly compiled similar data previously.

Separately, Ayles announced that board member Rob Federici had submitted his resignation earlier in July for what Ayles described as positive personal reasons, and that Monday's meeting was Federici's last. Federici thanked the board and the town, including staff members Mary Jane, Linda Trudeau, and a staffer referred to as Brendan. Ayles said the seat is held by the Democratic Town Committee's nomination; the board has 60 days from the date of resignation to fill it, after which the seat would open to any Guilford resident if unfilled.

"I'm definitely very sad to be leaving. Guilford, as we all know, is such an amazing community." — Rob Federici, board member

Mary Jane also reported that she, Linda Trudeau, and two staff members had already met with the town's auditor for the fiscal year 2026 audit, which is now scheduled to begin September 21, about a month earlier than last year's start, in hopes of smoother communication after difficulties with a new auditor last year. The board also noted that longtime executive assistant Karen Kersha had retired after roughly 30 to 35 years with the town, and that Brendan would be moving into that executive assistant role.

Procedural steps and outcome: No votes were taken on any of these items; the resignation and staffing changes were informational, and the registrar of voters data request was referred to the August 2026 meeting.

Implications and what is next: The board expects to discuss registrar of voters compensation in August using data gathered from town staff, and expects to fill Federici's seat within the 60-day window or open the appointment to the town.

WHO WAS THERE

Board of Finance members present: Michael Ayles, Chair; Meghan Scanlon, member; Jeffrey Beatty, member; Rob Federici, member (resigned, last meeting). Board of Finance members noted absent: Elias Kabeche; Amy Earls. Board of Finance members not referenced in the transcript: Robert Hartmann; Todd Fanciullo.

Staff and presenters: Mary Jane, town finance official (title not stated in transcript); Linda Trudeau, Board of Education finance staff (joined remotely); Dick Hersh, Board of Education representative; Brendan, town staff member, newly named executive assistant.

Other names referenced but not present: David Deo, Standing Building Committee contact who was unable to attend; Terry Fandella, contact coordinating the school facility needs assessment meeting; Karen Kersha, retiring executive assistant; a staff member referred to as Matt; a person referred to as Cliff regarding the Jones project; Joe Spurgeon, a vendor representative referenced regarding stop-loss insurance; Jonathan Troda and Susan Rener, Board of Selectmen members named to the medical insurance working group; Sandy Roof, a resident reportedly interested in that working group; a Board of Education representative referred to as "Delura"; a staffing representative referred to as Mitch; Gloria and Lisa, referenced regarding registrar of voters compensation data.

ORGANIZATIONS AND DOCUMENTS REFERENCED

Board of Selectmen — scheduled the September 15 Town Meeting on the proposed police facility property purchase and formed the medical insurance working group discussed in new business.

Standing Building Committee — held the July 8 executive-session meeting on the police department facility and program study, and the earlier meeting addressing Jones project bonding transfers.

Frier Architects (as named in the meeting) — conducted the school facility needs assessment to be reviewed at the September 9 meeting.

Democratic Town Committee — expected to nominate a replacement for Rob Federici's vacated board seat.

Nationwide Security Corp. — vendor billed for card-reader service calls on the Board of Education warrant.

Karen Gray — consultant for play-based learning professional development cited in the Board of Education warrant review.

Yale University School of Medicine / Cedarhurst School — pupil-services training program cited in the Board of Education warrant review.

June 15, 2026 Board of Finance regular meeting minutes — approved with a dollar-figure correction.

June 18, 2026 Board of Finance special meeting minutes — approved; set the 28.40 mill rate and 2.73 percent increase.

Board of Education June 2026 expenditure and revenue warrant — reviewed and accepted, $10,798,928.28.

Town government June 2026 expenditure and revenue warrant — reviewed and accepted, $2,812,263 in expenditures against a preliminary $2 million revenue surplus.