Funding concerns

For the first time in nearly two months, Portland City Council met in its chambers.

Though it didn’t vote on much, the council engaged in a discussion about the coronavirus pandemic and what it could mean for next year’s budget.

The general consensus among the council and city clerk-treasurer Lori Phillips was that next year’s budget cannot be concrete until the city receives two key pieces of information.

The first is an estimated figure on how much tax revenue the city will lose because of COVID-19.

Phillips said there could be a 25% decrease in city revenue next year, which would significantly impact the city’s budget. Primary revenue streams which could be affected are money Portland receives from gas, highway and sales taxes.

She added that the city is waiting on finalizing anything for next year’s budget until it receives more information from the state’s Department of Local Government and Finance.

Another key piece of information is the independent wage study the city is expected to receive in a couple of months. Council approved a wage study to look into whether or not the city is paying its employees more and less than comparable cities in the area.

Portland Police Chief Nathan Springer said competitive wages go a long way in recruiting new employees. That was one of the many reasons he came before the council to ask for a more than $4,514.76 raise for the city’s 12 full-time officers.

A vote on a potential raise was tabled by the council because it is unsure what next year’s budget will look like.

There was also a concern among council members, particularly Kent McClung, that paying officers more than other city employees would be problematic. Currently officers have the same starting wage as any other full-time city employee.

“I would argue that we are not equal,” Springer said. “Not that we’re any better because there are very important, but there is a difference.”

A raise is also vital to ensuring that officers stay with the department, which has had a lot of turnover over the last few years, Springer said. Currently the department is operating with 12 full-time officers, one less than its desired staffing of 13.

A raise would still keep the department within budget, since up until last month when two officers retired, it was paying for 14 full-time officers. The money set aside for an extra officer would be allocated to the other officers, keeping the department within budget.

If a 13th officer is hired, their wage would still be at the current salary plus insurance cost of $58,691.88. Any new officer hired would stay at the current wage and would receive a raise after they completed police academy training.

“If he feels good that he can stay in that budget … to me he knows more than I do about his department,” said council member Matt Goldsworthy while discussing whether to give officers a raise.

Portland Mayor John Boggs pointed out hiring a new officer, especially during the pandemic, is no easy task.

“What matters is the market,” Portland Mayor John Boggs said. “Even if we pay 10% more, if we can’t get someone, it doesn’t matter what you pay them.”

For the officers currently on the roster, Springer said a raise would be a much-needed morale boost, especially after they learned Jay County officers and employees are receiving additional compensation during the pandemic from the county’s rainy day fund.

Council member Janet Powers floated the idea of establishing hazard pay for city employees until a wage study is completed, but uncertainty over how long the pandemic could last killed the debate.

“This is not dead,” said McClung, who added the debate over a potential raise for officers would be discussed in future meetings.

In other business, council members Michele Brewster, Dave Golden, Mike Aker, Don Gillespie, McClung, Goldsworthy and Powers:

•Heard Boggs recommend the city’s water park not open this month because of the potential spread of COVID-19 and would be informing Portland Park Board about his recommendation at its meeting tonight.

Boggs also told council to expect a report from the United States Army Corps of Engineers about potential solutions to downtown Portland’s flooding problem at the next council meeting.

•Gave its blessing to a five-year tax abatement to FCC for a $14.5 million investment in manufacturing equipment estimated to retain 687 jobs. The proposed abatement now goes to the city’s tax abatement advisory committee.