NEWBERRY COUNTY COUNCIL
MINUTES
JUNE 5, 2007
Newberry County Council met on Tuesday, June 5, 2007, at 7:00 p.m. in the Conference Room at the Courthouse Annex, 1309 College Street, Newberry, SC, for a budget work session.
Present were: Henry B. Summer, Chairman
William D. Waldrop, Vice-Chairman
John E. Caldwell, Councilman
John David Dawkins, Councilman
Mike Hawkins, Councilman
Edgar Baker, Councilman
Henry H. Livingston, III, Councilman
Wayne Adams, County Administrator
Susan C. Fellers, Clerk to Council
Debbie S. Cromer, Finance Director
Media: Cindy Pitts, Newberry Observer
Notice of the meeting was duly advertised as required by law.
Mr. Summer called the meeting to order and determined a quorum to be present.
Mr. Livingston had the invocation.
Mr. Dawkins requested that the fairgrounds be added to the agenda for discussion. [Agenda Item 15(b)]
Mr. Baker moved to adopt the agenda as amended; second by Mr. Dawkins. Vote was unanimous.
The following items were discussed:
1. Legal costs associated with the lawsuit over the Highway 219 building. To date the County has spent $34,667 on legal costs and $68,809 for non-staff legal expenses.
2. Loss in Revenue at C&D Landfill. Council requested that Mr. Adams obtain additional figures as to the cost incurred by the County for household C&D collected at the convenience centers.
3. Changes in County fees.
Solid Waste fees – Council requested that Mr. Adams further investigate these fees.
Out of County animal fees – Council discussed increasing this charge to $15 per out of county animal.
J.F. Hawkins/Springfield Place – Martha Bursinger and Glenn Wicker requested an increase in room rates for Springfield Place (independent living and assisted living). The options presented by them were: (1) increase all rates an additional $100, which would generate additional revenue of $98,000 yearly, or (2) increase all rates by 5% (which would generate additional revenue of $95,970 yearly) to 6% (which would generate additional revenue of $115,164 yearly).
No action taken by Council on any of these items.
5. Proposed budget for J.F. Hawkins/Springfield Place. See notes above.
6. Employer Contributions to State Retirement System. The State is mandating a 12.55% increase in retirement contributions for employees. This will increase the County’s budget by $38,336.
7. Lease-Purchase financing of equipment. The recommendation was to pay cash for all items $50,000 and under resulting in a net increase of $94,263. The remaining lease-purchase expenses over a four-year period would cost $114,879 annually. This would not cause a change to the current budget.
8. Opera House Foundation request for funding. No financial information has been received from the Opera House. Council took no action on this matter.
9. Capital Budget considerations. Mr. Adams reviewed the following projects with Council: Library, Helena Community Center, industrial park infrastructure, repairs to Highway 219 building, Maybinton Ball Field, and the Rescue Squad 14 building. Council will discuss this item in more detail at the June 12, 2007 budget work session. No action taken by Council.
10. Carter Goble Lee project management fees. This will also be discussed in more detail at the June 12, 2007 meeting. No action taken by Council.
11. Funding of Employee Health Insurance options. Mr. Adams recommended the County pay for the less expensive “Standard” plan, but employees choosing the “Blue Choice” plan pay the $33.16 per month difference in the premium. This would reduce expenditures for this item by $43,572.
12. Closing of household waste/convenience center component of Transfer Station Facility and opening of alternate site. Mr. Adams recommended increasing the collections budget by $80,000 for this purpose.
13. New Assessor’s request for department funding. Mary Arrowood, Assessor, requested an additional $15,000 to hire new persons to facilitate posting of assessed value increase from building permits to the tax rolls. She also requested a restricted carry forward of the remaining $31,000 for parcel assemblage and software purposes to assist in finishing the reassessment appeals. The goal for finishing both of these projects is October 1, 2007. The $31,000 would be budget neutral.
14. Recommendations/comments from Elected Officials prior to budget adoption. The following Elected Officials were present: Judy Floyd, Treasurer; Jackie Bowers, Clerk of Court; Sheriff Lee Foster; and Kelly Nobles, Probate Judge. Of those, none had any comments or recommendations as to the budget.
15. Discussion of other budget related matters.
(a) Mr. Adams advised that the proportional amounts of revenues raised for fire protection purposes above the baseline amount of $307,193 were $723,521. Of that amount Newberry receives 19.8%; Prosperity receives 2.3%; and Whitmire receives 1.68%. The amounts budgeted for this purpose total $163,519, which is $8,534 short of the formula’s requirements. This would create an increase in the budget of $8,534.
(b) Fairgrounds. Mr. Dawkins requested that $20,000 be added to the budget for maintenance and repairs at the fairgrounds. No action taken by Council on this recommendation.
There being no further discussion, Mr. Baker moved to adjourn. Vote was unanimous.
Meeting adjourned at 9:00 p.m.
NEWBERRY COUNTY COUNCIL
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Henry B. Summer, Chairman
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Susan C. Fellers, Clerk to Council
APPROVED: June 20, 2007