Madison Co. BOC opens budget talks

“Why don’t we just get to brass tacks and be done with it?” chairman Dove countered, saying Pethel was referring to the three departments and line items being over-budget for 2011: the sheriff’s office, the probate court and county vehicle maintenance. And he pointed out that two of those departments are run by constitutional officers, who like the board, are elected by the voters.

Commissioner Jim Escoe also spoke up, saying he thinks constitutional officers should be required to come before the board for a budget amendment before going over their budgets.

And Dove accused the pair of trying to use the budget hearings to deal with their political issues with constitutional officers.

“We are not going to make this a political issue in these budget hearings,” Dove said, calling a “point of order.”

Escoe countered that he had not mentioned any names and asked to be allowed to finish.

“That’s the point, you want to talk around it,” Dove said.

Dove also explained that departments are not over-budget “until they’re over” saying that the county often doesn’t know a department has overspent its yearly budget until several months after the end of the year when all the bills have come in.

“If at the end of the year they’re over budget, that’s on them – they are responsible to the people, not the BOC…what are you gonna’ do, shut that department down?” Dove said.

Dove said Tuesday that he thinks it’s “fairly clear” that some commissioners have political favorites, and that they are entitled to do so, but that he does not intend to allow business meetings to be used as part of a political agenda. “In my opinion, there has already been way too much negativity this campaign season,” he said, pointing out that this is not the first time he has called a point of order to stop such discussions during a business meeting. “I think such discussions only cause dissention between commissioners and constitutional officers,” he said.

Dove told commissioners that the board has cut more than $1.5 million from the budget since 2008 and that if department heads request any increase in their budgets, they must be very specific in what they are asking for.

“But constitutional officers are beholden to the public, we set their budget, but we don’t control it,” Dove said.

Pethel argued that he did not want to take money from the $4.5 - 5 million in county reserves to balance the budget.

“Taxpayer money being spent like that is my concern,” Pethel said. “Why do we want to go through all this just to spend, spend, spend?”

Dove encouraged Pethel to be specific in what cuts he wants to make as the board hears from the various departments.

“I made suggestions on specific cuts last year, but I was by myself in it,” Pethel said. “I feel like my job is to protect taxpayers from over-spending.”

Commissioner Pete Bond said he feels the board’s purpose is to “get a budget and get it balanced” with the options of raising the millage rate to generate more money or sticking with the funds available. Dove added that there is a third option – to cut expenses within departments.

District one commissioner Stanley Thomas said that he feels there are really only two options – working with the money at hand, including using the money in reserves, or making cuts. He said he did not feel that raising taxes is an option.

“That money (in reserves) is not our money, it’s taxpayer money, we just oversee it,” Thomas said.

The county’s proposed 2013 budget stands at $13,541,695 and chairman Dove said he expects the commission will be able to shave $250,000 or so off that amount. He also pointed out that the county has a healthy amount of cash reserves, well above the amount recommended by the state.

DEPARTMENT REQUESTS

The BOC heard from the registrar’s office, planning and zoning, the information technology department, the E-911 center, building and grounds, the senior center, the district attorney’s office, code enforcement and the recreation department during morning and afternoon meetings Monday.

The most notable requests for increases came in the form of cost-of -living raises for employees.

E-911 director David Camp discussed upgrading the system’s radio equipment, which has not been replaced since the 9-1-1 system “went live” in 1999. The cost is estimated at approximately $200,000, which will not affect the general fund, since it can be paid with by SPLOST funds.

IT director Gary Venable asked for approximately $10,000 over last year’s budget to purchase new computers for three departments.

Clark and county clerk Linda Cox went over the budgets of the general government, commissioners, juvenile court and finance, noting no increases and a few decreases.