Holyoke City — At a Charter and Rules Committee meeting on April 7, 2025, committee members reviewed a multi-page municipal modernization proposal that would create a consolidated finance department led by a Chief Administrative Financial Officer and would combine the offices of city treasurer and tax collector. Presenters said the change aims to strengthen internal controls, improve year‑end close procedures and produce budget savings, but committee members asked for more analysis and directed staff to prepare draft ordinance and charter language while tabling formal action.

The proposal was presented to the Charter and Rules Committee, chaired by Meg McGrath Smith, by Treasurer Rory Casey and consultant T.J. Plant, with City Solicitor Mike Bissonette available for legal questions. Plant described the CAFO role as centralizing budgeting, capital planning and multi‑year financial forecasting; Bissonette told the committee that adopting Massachusetts General Laws chapter 43C is optional for creating a finance department. The committee ultimately voted to table the items and asked the law department and staff to return with draft ordinance and charter language.

Why it matters: The reorganization would shift several accounting, procurement and auditing functions into a single, centralized finance department and establish a senior, professional CAFO position to provide continuity across administrations. Proponents said the change would reduce reliance on outside contractors, address recurring audit findings, and improve the city’s ability to close its books and manage cash flow. Opponents and some councilors pressed for concrete salary ranges, a side‑by‑side comparison of current ordinances and the proposed changes, and clearer language to guarantee operational independence for the CAFO.

Presenters and key claims
- Rory Casey, City Treasurer, and the mayor’s office explained the proposed structure and said it had been scaled to Holyoke’s needs. Casey said the draft is intended to be budget neutral in fiscal 2026 with savings projected in fiscal 2027. He noted the city currently budgets about 20 positions across the affected finance-related departments and that the proposal would result in a net decrease of two positions (to 18) after consolidation and reorganization. Casey also cited the city’s heavy reliance on contracted services and singled out information‑technology contracts as a large line item.

- T.J. Plant, the consultant and former Springfield CAFO, summarized the CAFO duties from his Springfield experience and described the office as providing independent, technical financial oversight and multi‑year planning. "Multi‑year financial planning is a must, and the CAFO would bring that to the city," Plant said.

- City Solicitor Mike Bissonette advised the committee that the council may accept the optional provisions of Massachusetts General Laws chapter 43C but is not required to adopt that statute to create a finance department by ordinance. He also noted a packet of draft materials and a proposed timeline that had been circulated to the committee.

Proposed changes and examples cited
- Creation of a CAFO to oversee budgeting, capital improvement planning, procurement oversight and financial policy development. The CAFO would be appointed by the mayor with city council approval under the current draft and would have authority to appoint some direct reports with council involvement in certain appointments.

- A new comptroller role to take on accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll operations and reconciliation tasks now split among offices; a director of internal audit would remain independent and oversee fraud reporting and internal reviews.

- Combining the treasurer and tax collector offices so one official handles custody of funds, reconciliations and parking permit and meter collections currently split across departments and third‑party vendors.

- Staffing and finances: presenters said the city currently spends nearly $400,000 on IT contracted services and that reducing outside contracting by hiring in‑house capacity (and reorganizing staff) would lower costs. They estimated the reorganization could be budget neutral for fiscal 2026 and produce more than $100,000 in savings in fiscal 2027, depending on implementation timing and bargaining outcomes.

Council response and requested follow‑ups
Committee members asked for more detail before a policy vote. Councilors sought:
- A side‑by‑side, redline version showing current finance ordinances and the proposed ordinance language;
- A pro forma budget and salary ranges showing how the proposal would be budget neutral in FY2026 and where the FY2027 savings would come from;
- Clarification of appointment and removal authority for the CAFO and direct reports so independence and operational continuity are preserved; and
- A list of comparable Massachusetts municipalities with similar structures scaled to Holyoke’s size.

Solicitor Bissonette indicated draft language and templates are available in the materials already provided and said the committee could adopt a phased approach — for example, combining the treasurer and tax collector office first and addressing other elements later. He also noted that the package includes proposed charter amendments (filed as part of the Municipal Modernization packet) that would require petitioning the state legislature if the council wishes to pursue them.

Formal actions
At the start of the meeting the committee approved procedural motions to permit a member to participate by Zoom, to remove items 1 and 2 from the table, and to suspend the rules to take them up together. Following the discussion the committee voted to table both agenda items for further work and then adjourned. No ordinance or charter changes were adopted at the meeting.

Next steps
Committee chairs and staff agreed to ask the law department and the mayor’s office to prepare draft ordinance language and a redline comparison of existing finance ordinances versus the proposed structure, plus a pro forma budget showing salary ranges and detailed assumptions. The co‑sponsors identified on the order are Councilor Meg McGrath Smith, Councilor Israel Rivera and Councilor Tessa Murphy Ramboletti; the matter remains under committee review and will return to a future meeting for further consideration or a formal vote.

Ending: The Charter and Rules Committee did not reach a final decision and formally tabled the submitted orders; staff and the law department were asked to produce draft ordinance and charter language and cost detail for the committee’s next meeting.