Last week’s mid-month meeting of the Putnam County Board of Commissioners featured four public hearings and a regular business meeting, but the focus clearly pointed to decisions to be made this week on the county’s 2022-23 budget and mill rate – decisions complicated by inflation and tumult in the labor market.
The commissioners held a budget work session Wednesday (after the Messenger’s printing deadline) and are set to formally adopt the budget at 9 a.m. this Friday, Aug. 26, and set the mill rate Sept. 2, at the same time.
There is little doubt the commissioners have been working individually and behind the scenes to cut away on County Manager Paul Van Haute’s published recommendations for a $24.8 million general fund budget and a 13.88% increase in property taxes. The cutting exercise happens every year.
Scuttlebutt about possible larger cuts focuses on using some of the county’s healthy fund balance of $13 million to offset a property tax increase or delaying the implementation of an 8%, across-the-board, cost-of-living allowance (COLA) from Oct. 1 to Jan 1, 2023.
Differences this year come from the pressures rising out of inflationary cost increases and the recruiting – and retention – of skilled employees, not to mention backlash from property owners facing the same pressures or citizens seeking better services.
Van Haute recently referred to “this crazy economy,” where the cost of a new ambulance jumped from $175,000 to $215,000 in a year, where a new trash-hauling contract went up $600,000, where insurance rates increased 20 percent, and where local governments actively recruit employees from their neighboring jurisdictions.
“We are in a crisis situation in staffing,” Sheriff Howard Sills told the commissioners. “Nobody wants to get into law enforcement, but I am not going to lower our standards.”
A couple of weeks ago, the commissioners announced a long-coming decision to beef up the pay, beyond the COLA, for the county’s large contingent of first responders – deputies, firefighters, ambulance service – with beginning pay for deputies rising to $45,000 annually.
No sooner was that announced than Sills was passing out a countering ad from a neighboring county for $50,000 beginning pay for deputies. “And what are you going to do with those who have been with you for 15-20 years,” he said. “I don’t know that raising to $50,000 is the solution.”
The evening was not complete without pushback on expenses from property owners and from a large group seeking attention for Jimmy Davis Park.
In a sampling of citizen comments, Jennifer Ray suggested taking the county’s extra expenses “out of savings,” an apparent reference to the fund balance. She also suggested looking at options for trash haulers, preferring to have home pick-up as well.
“I don’t understand how anybody can raise taxes now,” said Phil Uzzo. “It’s like the Weimar Republic (in 1920s Germany after World War I), where you have nothing left to lose.”
Meanwhile, a large group argued for the county or city or somebody to do something about Jimmy Davis Park.
“What is so bad about it is the city does not want it, and the county does not want it,” said Consuela Smith.
“The shape it’s in is just not fair,” said Karen Evans.
In other actions, the commission approved three rezoning or conditional uses:
• Conditional use in a C-2 (commercial) zone for a demonstration boat lift at 938 Greensboro Hwy.;
• Five conditions in the R-1 zoning on 130 acres off Emory Drive for Adam Schulze. Opposition had come from nearby Lake Sinclair cove residents, who have argued that failure of an under-construction farm-pond dam during heavy rain had “ruined” the cove with mud and damaged their property values;
• And a shift from Ag (agricultural) to C-2 (commercial) for nine acres owned by William and Barbara Vargo at 860 Harmony Rd.