Pay hikes may be trimmed (8/11/04)

After zipping through more than half of the budgets for county departments and finding only a handful of dollars to cut, the Jay County Council took aim at salaries.

Members of the council, who will wrap up back-to-back budget hearings tonight following the council’s regular monthly meeting at 6 p.m., appear ready to reduce a planned increase in wages for county employees and elected officials in order to make needed cuts in the 2005 budget.

The council, which made less than $20,000 in cuts Tuesday, needs to slice a little more than $300,000 out of budget requests to reduce those allocations to the maximum amount the state will allow the county to raise through property taxes and still maintain an operating balance (cash reserves) of $1.2 million.

Jay County auditor Freda Corwin was asked by council members to re-figure proposed salaries with an average 4 percent increase in time for tonight’s budget hearing — a drop from a 6.44 percent hike the council had discussed before budget requests were prepared.

Council members Gerald Kirby, Marilyn Coleman, Andy Schemenaur, George Meehan, Todd Wickey, Mark Barnett and Jack Houck agreed by consensus — at least on Tuesday — to approve an increase in the per-month amount paid for health insurance coverage for county employees. That amount, which is currently $426 per month per employee enrolled in the health insurance plan, would increase to $446, if approved.

Those savings — combined with a conservative approach to granting additional appropriations for the remainder of this year — would put the budget nearly in balance. Another possible cut could come in the elections budget, where $50,000 is budgeted for the purchase of election equipment.

Jay County clerk Jane Ann Runyon plans to enter a three-year lease-purchase of the new equipment, which has already been ordered. Because a federal grant will be used to pay for the new equipment, the money in the budget can be trimmed. Runyon will display the new equipment to council members before this evening’s meeting.

Council members zipped relatively quickly through the scheduled departments to be reviewed on Tuesday, then went through several others scheduled for tonight.

Early in Tuesday’s hearing, Schemenaur suggested making an across-the-board reduction of 5 percent in the other services and charges categories of county budgets (known as 300 accounts). That move would trim about $180,000, Schemenaur said.

But after some council members said such cuts would be more punitive to those departments with tighter budget requests, the idea was dropped.

Minor cuts were made in the budgets of the Jay County Health Department, Jay County treasurer and Jay/Portland Building and Planning Department.

That minor cut — $4,500 for a vehicle lease payment — for the building and planning department could have major ramifications. Because the department is a joint city-county venture and because its budget is set by a board comprised of officials from both the city county, the change could mean the entire budget will have to be rejected.

Unless the joint board can meet before the first reading of the budget on Wednesday, Aug. 25 and approve the reduction, the budget for the building and planning department may have to be approved by additional appropriation in January.

Members of the council questioned building and planning administrator Bill Milligan about the $4,500 amount in a line item. Milligan said the 2003 compact pick-up truck owned by the department has approximately 20,000 miles. It was paid off early on a three-year lease-purchase agreement.

Milligan said members of the joint board were looking at replacing the vehicle late in 2005 or early in 2006 as part of a three-year rotation. By having the vehicle under warranty, money is saved on repairs, Milligan said.

But members of the council agreed by consensus they were opposed to trading such a relatively new, low-mileage vehicle.

“I certainly don’t feel we should replace a vehicle with that low of mileage,” Kirby said.

Also Tuesday, increases in the pay grade for three county positions were approved. The changes had been made by county pay plan consultant Jonna Reece.

The biggest increase was for the position of retirement center matron, which will become a pay grade 10, up from a 7. The change brings the position to a point equal with the matron at the jail.

Also increased were the pay grade for retirement center cooks (3 from a 2) and payroll clerk for the auditor (8 from a 6).[[In-content Ad]]