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Date: 6/27/2022
HATFIELD – On June 21 officials from the Hatfield Housing Authority (HHA) presented the town’s housing plan for fiscal year 2023 (FY23). The good news is that maintenance projects at the Capawonk senior housing development, deferred during the coronavirus pandemic, are back on track.
According to the annual report submitted to the state Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) the day-to-day maintenance has resumed. Staff were able to complete all of the annual unit inspections and all work orders deferred due to COVID-19. The electrical and plumbing work, formerly a staff responsibility, was outsourced through service contracts, a significant change that has met with good results.
The housing plan documents the local housing authority has a maintenance budget for the coming year of $69,663, an increase of just over $9,000 from last year, or 16.1 percent. The budget for extraordinary maintenance is $11,980, an increase of about $7,000 over FY22.
The FY23 general budget, yet to be finalized, shows receipts from all sources, grants, aid and local contributions totaling $230,183, an increase of a tenth of 1 percent from last year, while projected expenses will total $242,263. The projected shortfall between revenues and expenses rose 27.2 percent to $12,080. The HHA is required to maintain significant fiscal reserves.
The revenue side of the FY23 budget for the HHA displays some positive developments. Retained revenue and net metering income augmented receipts by $6,000. Receipts from tenants increased by $5,489 to $214,500, a 2.6 percent bump.
Subsidies from the DHCD dropped 73.3 percent, from $14,102 to $3,766. Operating reserves, maintained as a cushion against unanticipated expenses, contributed $2,967 to the budget.
The expense side of the budget showed large increases in many line items, which are misleading. In FY22 many costs were lower, due to the limits in place during COVID-19, and the increases listed in the report represent the difference between the actual spending last year and amounts budgeted for FY23. The 593.3 percent increase in the travel-related line item shows the difference between actual spending of $476 last year and the FY2023 budget of $3,300. The line item was also budgeted for $3,300 in FY22.
Those differences aside, a number of line items show significant changes. The cost of employee benefits rose 24.2 percent, to $39,379. A line for compensated absences, which represents the cost of employee vacations and sick days, accrued $5,431 in spending last year, but has no budget in FY23.
Total administrative expenses rose 7.4 percent for next year.
The electricity budget last year was $11,600, but expenditures totaled only $2,962. The electricity budget for the coming year is $5,250. Gas expense budgets are $4,960 both this year and next, though actual spending last year was $1,000 less. In total, utilities are budgeted a 19.6 percent increase from the actual spending of $46,286 in FY22. The FY2023 utilities budget is $55,380.
Total maintenance costs in FY22 were $60,018. Maintenance is budgeted for $69,663, a 16.1 percent increase in FY23. General expenses, which include insurance, employee benefits, and interest paid on loans, reached spending last year of $31,982. That spending level was $20,000 less than the amount budgeted. The projected spending for FY23 is $49,859, an increase of 55.9 percent from last year’s spending.
A narrative by management at Capawonk, required every other business cycle, was not part of the report this year. The report generated no questions from the residents at the meeting.