| 0:04:07 | Handbooks adopted one at a time | Herrington had met Madden "like five minutes ago" to work through the comments. Madden's issues: the dress code, "A pet peeve of mine," and the diploma format, "The 27 credits, the New Hampshire Scholars endorsement versus the Stem and Arts." Whitney took the three handbooks in separate motions "so people can peel off"; Kennedy was introduced as the new CMS principal; Crawford thanked Madden for "his work in persistent and persistence in reviewing the handbooks." | |
| 0:14:30 | Fiscal-control policies adopted | Nine policies adopted on second read, among them DA Fiscal Management Plan, DGA Authorized Signatures, DIE Audits and DK Payments, Checks & Manifests, with the records-retention, inventory and procurement procedures. The approved minutes record Crawford saying the policies "have already been looked at and moved to a second read because they were found to be good and are already being used." Sprague: "Mrs. Hawkins is a slave driver?" | POSITIVE |
| 0:20:03 | Nonpublic session and a five-year seal | Sprague: "I'd like to make a motion to go into nonpublic under RSA 91-8 colon three comma LLAC [91-A:3, II(a), (c) and (l)] and l a being dismissal, promotion or compensation. If any public employee c matters which if discussed in public which likely affected virtually [adversely the reputation] of any person, and l consideration of legal advice provided by legal counsel." Roll call. On return, at 0:21:25, Whitney: "I'd like to make a motion to seal the minutes of the meeting for five years." Roll call at 0:21:40. No ground for the seal is stated. | MEDIUM POSITIVE |
| 0:22:29 | The chair discloses the deficit | Whitney: "So it gives me no pleasure to convey to the public and to the board at large that as of fiscal year 25, we have a massive deficit anywhere between 1 and $5 million. This deficit, leaves the district in a position where we are struggling to keep doors open and to pay, mental, fundamental aspects of payroll." | HIGH |
| 0:23:27 | Counsel: "a state of fiscal distress" | The auditor reports "a significant deficit that you're carrying over as a, an operating deficit from last year to this year"; vendors, the health insurance provider among them, report "large payments that have been in arrears." "Because there is, at this point, insufficient cash flow on a week to week, month to month basis to make all those payments as they become due… I would call this a state of fiscal distress for the district." The minutes add that the state asked for an action plan for September and beyond by the end of the next day. | HIGH |
| 0:26:57 | A court, a ballot, or cuts | One route is to petition the Superior Court for permission to hold a special meeting on a supplemental appropriation; at 0:27:55: "The judge has to agree that an emergency exists". The other is cuts. Later, at 1:25:02, on borrowing: "A nonstarter." At 1:25:03: "The solution here is maybe the legislature makes a change or something, but under current law, there is no fix that I'm aware of." | OBSERVATION |
| 0:29:48 | Madden: "somewhat deceptive" | "I think the presentation was somewhat deceptive. The fact that we're sitting here tonight and we're talking about many millions of dollars. At that time, we were talking about 1 million, maybe as high as $1.5 million." On the spring's phrase, at 0:30:10: "We put fancy words and names to the problem. I think we hid behind our lawyer." At 0:31:43: "From what we've been told, this is because of negligence, mismanagement." At 0:31:55: "And we've been told there's nothing nefarious. But in three months we go from $1 million to X, and I don't even know what X is." | MEDIUM |
| 0:33:35 | IRS payments; the school-opening question | Madden: "I've been asking. Also, I've been asking whether or not the IRS payments have been made and I can't get an answer." Henry at 0:33:50: "Up to date. Up to date. Oh, yes. Up to date. Every payroll they get paid on the Friday payroll goes out." Madden at 0:33:58 asks whether school opening in two weeks is under threat, and that families be told about VLACS and RVCC options. | |
| 0:37:57 | $3 million of adequacy aid due September 1 | "The 3 million that we were talking about coming from the state's money, that's due to us. It's not extra funds." At 0:38:14: "That's your state advocacy [adequacy], right? That's that's coming in. The state cannot send us that any sooner than when it's due." The dialogue file gives this to Sprague as an uncertain attribution ("voice merged into counsel's cluster"); the approved minutes credit the point to Vice Chair Petrin. | |
| 0:39:55 | The auditor's advice, relayed | Crawford, from an hour-long meeting that afternoon with Sprague and "Mike Campo, who is our account? No. Who is our auditor": "How does the structural deficit fall into this current deficit? And he said, ignore." At 0:40:26: "Your total focus should be on your current year deficit and try and get a number". | HIGH |
| 0:40:51 | Pratt asks Madden to clarify "nefarious" | Pratt: "when you speak about nefarious, I was wondering, are you claiming that the current administration is nefarious?" Madden at 0:41:21: "My question is, my question is, is there anything nefarious going on?" The board then settles that the deficit under discussion is the year that "ended fiscal year and June 30th 25" (Crawford, 0:43:11). Pratt at 0:44:52: "I'd rather rely on the the evidence that the public can find online." | |
| 0:45:40 | Hawkins: outrage, and preventing a repeat | "We are representatives of the community and we are advocates for students, teachers, educators, families. And we would be offending those people if we were not outraged by this." At 0:46:17: "how do we make sure we're not back here next year asking the same question, having the same conversation? We're in survival mode right now." | |
| 0:50:43 | Sprague on the administration's plan and special education | "It's a disaster. The overages, the." At 0:50:46: "Inefficiencies, the mismanagement. It's just a disaster. And I just feel that I didn't see anything in that plan to remediate what I consider to be a dysfunctional system with no, no rubrics, no procedures". | MEDIUM |
| 0:52:02 | Crawford: FY26 money paying FY25 bills | "information that we have asked for and we haven't received, that has been very difficult." On the audits at 0:56:00: "It is not the auditors fault"; at 0:56:24: "we have been extremely slow, very slow in providing that information to the auditors". At 0:57:00: "right now, I think we've already spent a million and a half of the 26 money paying the 25 bills, and we don't have that kind of money in the budget." | HIGH OBSERVATION |
| 0:57:35 | Koski: errors carried forward | "there's a reason we're doing it's 22 audits in 24, 25". At 0:57:59: "The prior year is bad numbers that errors carried forward and then carried forward again, then carried forward again." At 0:58:34: "It was such a chaotic system". Howard replies that the board wants solutions, and that the deficit on the table is FY25. | HIGH |
| 1:02:30 | Where the overages are | Howard: "There is 2.5 million in overtures [overages] specifically for special ed, based on the print out that we were sent this week." O'Hearn at 1:03:21 describes hiring and overtime controls under way. Petrin at 1:04:40: half the lines on page one overspent. Pratt at 1:05:41: the figures are still being reconciled so the auditors can go through them. | MEDIUM |
| 1:06:12 | The closed SAU office; "stonewalled" | Madden asks what staff charged their time to while the SAU office was closed for two weeks in July; Pratt: closed "To the public." Hawkins, as SAU 6 chair, owns the decision. Madden at 1:08:07: "it's indicative of a total lack of financial control." At 1:08:24: "And when I ask for information, I get stonewalled." Crawford at 1:08:42: "there has been a pattern of not delivering information when the board has asked for". | OBSERVATION |
| 1:11:25 | Public comment reopened | "Given the extent given the topic tonight, I'd like to, open public comments". Two people spoke. | POSITIVE |
| 1:12:05 | Rep. Damon: 67% of special-education aid | "the state paid 67% of the requested special education funds in fiscal year. This not fiscal and academic year just completed." At 1:12:42: "a statute did pass the most that the state can pro rate. The special ed appropriation is down to 80%." She raised city collaboration or a bond. Sprague at 1:18:38: "What you're talking about used to be catastrophic aid, and it's special ed aid". | OBSERVATION |
| 1:16:04 | How long can the district pay its bills? | Henry: "I've got a few September right now and into October." At 1:16:42: "I'm going to tell you the end of September because I'm working on October because we get our next adequacy aid November 1st or second." Whitney at 1:17:05: "How can you express that confidence when the deficit number has varied dramatically?" Henry at 1:17:18: "We don't have a choice." Pratt at 1:18:04: a payment plan with SchoolCare, and the city is releasing money "a week earlier". | HIGH |
| 1:19:30 | Gary Merchant (Ward 2): delay the opening | A detailed cash-flow statement, at 1:20:14: "I think it needs to be done with the next 48 hours." At 1:21:04: "it's better to postpone the issue for a few weeks and then have the school year go into June if we have to." At 1:21:57: "put the knives away. Sit down." Crawford at 1:22:49: delaying "doesn't really anything except the kids aren't in class." | |
| 1:23:16 | Why a bond is not available | Crawford had asked the auditor about spreading the deficit "like a bond, like do it over ten years". At 1:24:17: "The school district can't can't borrow the money. It's it the city has to". Counsel at 1:25:02: bonding to pay off the deficit is "A nonstarter" for city and district alike under current law. | OBSERVATION |
| 1:26:52 | "The fix is not a local fix" | Counsel, after meeting the Commissioner and the Bureau of School Finance: "It's a legislative issue." At 1:27:34: "And the fix is not a local fix. It may have to be a state fix." On special education at 1:27:50: "You guys increase the age to 22." | OBSERVATION OBSERVATION |
| 1:30:12 | The Commissioner's written instruction | "She says while there are a lot of other things happening, cash flow is the priority." At 1:30:35: "So she has asked for a detailed cash flow statement, starting with the current cash balance and covering through the end of September, showing all expenses, including all remaining payables from 25 through 26". At 1:31:27: "They assign a state auditor who oversees and comes in and helps the district". "We have none of that in New Hampshire." | HIGH OBSERVATION |
| 1:33:42 | What the board demanded for August 20 | Madden: "So I'd like to see it a weekly breakdown", because the date the money runs out keeps moving. Crawford at 1:34:50: "we don't have the information, but we cannot we do not feel comfortable". Whitney at 1:36:00: "We will have the documentation that has been requested by the commissioner"; Pratt at 1:36:32 agrees to deliver it 24 hours ahead. | POSITIVE |