Newton has more than $23 million in free cash, left over from Fiscal Year 2024. What happens to that money now?
In her recent presentation to the City Council, Newton CFO Maureen Lemieux explained that high interest income (from high interest rates) accounts for $11.5 million of that, with an unexpected post-pandemic increase in revenues from the city’s meals and excise taxes adding to the unexpected free cash windfall.
Since then, readers have been asking: What happens to that free cash now? So we asked Lemieux.
It turns out the money sits there, waiting to be spent.
“All uses of free cash must be approved by the City Council,” Lemieux said.
Unexpected expenses come up throughout the fiscal year, from various city departments, and the mayor submits requests for funds from the free cash account to cover those expenses.
But it’s not all unexpected.
Lemieux listed several “significant initiatives” for which Mayor Ruthanne Fuller’s administration plans to recommend some of that free cash be used ($5 million combined for the schools and $5 million for city departments):
- $2 million for the Newton Public Schools Educational Stabilization Fund
- $2 million for NPS math curriculum
- $300,000 for NPS Phone over Internet (VoIP) Technology for the two high schools
- $700,000 for small capital projects for the schools
- $1.8 million for a new fire ladder truck
- $1 million for PFAS-Free Protective Fire Gear
- $225,000 for police and fire station security upgrades
- $200,000 Traffic Calming ($200K),
- $1 million for DPW Fleet replacement
- $775,000 for small municipal capital projects
“Further decisions will be made regarding the utilization of additional free cash as the fiscal year progresses and we have completed the winter storm season and have gained more clarity in our operating needs for these funds,” Lemieux said.