Free cash gives city flexibility
By Sarah Freedman Contributing Writer

Marlborough - The addition of $2 million in free cash will mean sunshine for the city's rainy day fund.

The commonwealth of Massachusetts recently certified the amount of free cash for Marlborough in the amount of $5.05 for the fiscal year 2007, up about $2 million from last year.

The mayor and City Council decide how the money is spent, City Comptroller Tom Abel said, but half of the free cash usually goes to the stabilization fund, or "rainy day" fund for the city.

However the money may be used, he said, it will go other expenses, such as hiring a public employee or buying a new fire engine.

"It's nice to have the five million in 'free cash' because it allows the city some flexibility," Abel said.

Free cash, he said, is the money left over from closing the city's books and settling outstanding debts. He likened the money to balancing a "checkbook and having some money left over."

When Abel and other members of the comptroller's office settle the financial books for Marlborough, the amount of revenue coming into the city is balanced with the expenditures approved by the City Council.

The diff erence, or amount of free cash, is reported to the Massachusetts Department of Revenue and then verified.

The books, Abel said, deal with transactions worth $215 million in revenue. Every "piece of revenue" is carefully checked.

This year's free cash amount was higher than it has been in the past.

In fact, this year's $5 million was "the highest Marlborough had in 14 years," Abel said. Last year's $3 million is an average amount for the state to certify.

"The main thing is we made sure expenditures coming out of the city [were] looked at very hard," he added.

Mayor Nancy Stevens called the amount a positive result of good financial decisions.

"I'm very pleased," she said. "It shows [the city leaders] budgeted and spent conservatively."

She praised the people responsible for keeping the city's books so well organized.

"I would like to take this opportunity to publicly thank the city's finance team consisting of Comptroller Tom Abel, collector Deb Puleo, assessor Tony Trodella and auditor Diane Smith for their excellent work in closing the city's books," she said in her announcement about the certified free cash amount.