Auburn Finance Committee Approves Over $115,000 in Year-End Reserve Transfers

AUBURN — June 3, 2026 — Auburn Finance Committee approves more than $115,000 in year-end reserve-fund transfers. The committee, chaired by Kevin W. Kennedy, worked through more than a dozen requests at its June 3 meeting, including a $50,000 police overtime transfer that Police Chief Kennedy said reflects the department's status as the lowest per-officer overtime spender among comparable peer communities — while still running four officers short due to academy recruits. A $30,000 fuel transfer addressed a harder-than-expected winter and rising prices, with the current fleet fuel balance at $11,674.85 before the transfer and another June transfer already anticipated. Building Superintendent Joe Fahey secured a $13,925 transfer for an emergency hot water coil replacement at Town Hall, discovered when panels were opened during the ongoing heat-pump HVAC upgrade — a repair Fahey called "a controlled emergency repair" to avoid a potential building shutdown. The Fire Department also flagged a coming overtime transfer tied to fireworks coverage, two employees on leave, and a resignation, telling the committee: "We still have the fireworks coming up, which we're not going to anticipate having enough money."