City Council - Finance Committee

CITY OF EASTHAMPTON OFFICE OF THE CITY COUNCIL Easthampton Municipal Building Minutes 50 Payson Ave., Ste. 100 Easthampton, Massachusetts 01027-2260 City Telephone #: (413) 529-1460 Council Fax #: (413) 529-1417 Finance Committee Meeting, 8/16/2023 Attendees: Finance Committee Members: Councilor Dan Rist, Chair Councilor Tom Peake, Clerk Councilor Koni Denham (remote) Other Attendees: City Auditor Hetal Patel City Council President Homar Gomez IT Director Karin Camihort Meeting was called to order at 5:15 PM. 1) Approval of Minutes: On motion made by Councilor Rist and seconded by Councilor Denham, it was unanimously voted to approve the minutes of June 14. 2) Mayor’s Communication: None 3) Public Speak: None 4) New Business a) $225.00 for FY ’23 old bills – payroll processing and shredding expense. This is an old bill that was not encumbered. Motion made by Councilor Peake and seconded by Councilor Denham. Motion passed 3-0. b) IT request to present needed City Hall surveillance: (This is at the request of the IT director. As it has not been sent to Finance by the council, no action can be taken). IT Director Karin Camihort stated that the order of operations was confused here, but that it was important to cover these. The current cameras are old, many are not working, and some of them are made in China and contain components that could potentially be used for espionage. Director Camihort’s proposal is a new system that would cover both the Public Safety building and City Hall. The Councilors stated that this may trigger some privacy concerns. Director Camihort stated that she  and Chief Alberti could come to the Council with a proposed policy around the use of the cameras. 5) Old Business 6) Continuing Business a) Quarterly fiscal reports from the City Auditor: This was not discussed tonight. b) Quarterly Report on Covid-19 grant funding and spending: This was not discussed tonight. By motion made by Councilor Peake and seconded by Councilor Denham, the meeting was adjourned at 5:39 PM