[Blue Thunder]

I retired 4 years ago as Superintendent of the DPW in my town (34 years).
In Mass, the laws regarding Snow and Ice expenditures are very strict. S&I funds are appropriated separately at the Annual Town Meeting in the Spring. There are pretty stiff restrictions on the types of expenditures that can be made. Obviously, Sand, Salt, Liquid Calcium, Cutting Edges, Repairs to S&I related equipment, Hired Contractors, and payroll overtime were considered appropriate expenditures. There are others, of course, but they had to be directly related to Snow and Ice removal. When the Town is audited annually, close scrutiny is given to these expenses.
Any surplus funds are turned back in. They either revert to what is called “Free Cash” which can only be appropriated at a Town Meeting or they can be transferred to other municipal accounts that may be experiencing a shortfall, again, only by a vote of Town Meeting.
The Department of Revenue (DOR) has rules about S&I funding. A town must appropriate an equal to or greater amount of S&I funding each year in order to over expend S&I appropriations during a bad winter and funding runs out. This allows the town to carry forward those extra costs into the next fiscal year if necessary.

BT