Saugus FinCom refers funding for teachers contract to future Town Meeting, angering several

SAUGUS – Tempers flared Wednesday during a debate at the Finance Committee meeting that had teachers speaking out harshly and one committee member storming out in anger.Committee member Teri Katsos abruptly moved to adjourn the meeting after discussions over funding the teacher’s contract turned spiteful. The motion to adjourn failed, but Katsos had already left the meeting, clearly frustrated with the antagonistic direction the discussions were taking.The committee met to vote recommendations on the three remaining financial articles for Monday’s special Town Meeting. Among the articles was a request to transfer $330,000 from the Group Health Insurance to the School Department to fund the teachers contract. The idea is the money will come from the savings the town will realize from joining the state’s Group Insurance Commission, which has been estimated to be $372,000 for this year.In the din that followed Katsos’ leaving, the motion to adjourn failed, but the motion to refer the article to a future special Town Meeting passed unanimously.While most Finance Committee members said they didn’t have a problem with the contract per se, they did not agree with funding it through GIC savings largely because there is no guarantee that money will be there.School Committee Chairman Joseph Malone reminded the committee that if the School Committee hadn’t settled the contract that was contingent on the teachers joining the GIC, the town wouldn’t have the $372,000 to argue over.”The School Department came through for the whole town,” he said, adding that it only did so with the implicit knowledge that the funding would not come from the school’s budget. “I don’t think (Town Manager Andrew) Bisignani, (Superintendent) Dr. (Keith) Manville or (School Committee member) Wendy Reed and the rest of the committee could have done a better job. It gives us five years of labor peace, it’s consistent with what other educators are getting in their communities and it got us into the GIC.”Finance Committee Vice Chairman Ken DePatto argued that while the GIC savings was unsure, he was sure that without financial help the library and the Essex Street Fire Station would both close by March.Saugus Educators Association president Russ Brandwein fired back.”You could certainly spend $20 million more by closing the school system as well,” he said angrily.That prompted teachers in the audience to accuse the Finance Committee of not doing its job by planning for future financial shortfalls, which prompted Katsos to call a halt to the meeting.”Sure, walk out when you hear what you don’t want to hear,” shouted one teacher as Katsos stormed out.DePatto said later that another reason he voted against funding the article with a transfer of potential savings is that there are three other areas from which the money could come – budget transfers, appropriations or budget reductions. But he was quick to add it was not the committee’s place to recommend where the money should come from specifically.Finance Committee member Ronald Jepson said he personally would like to see the funding come through budget reductions from the municipal budget.”To me, the contract needs to be funded,” he said. “Our only problem is with the funding source.”