by Neil Richard
On January 31, 2019, the Board of Supervisors and most of the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee met for their second Budget Work Session. Just like the previous Work Session, Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, repeated much of what was covered last year. While he and the Supervisors may have remembered the information from last year, it served as a good education for the citizens.
Dr. Young's review covered the differences between charities and outside agencies, mandated and unmandated agencies, and a table comparing the amounts requested by outside agencies last year and the actual amounts funded by the Board. Dr. Young also assured the Board that neither he nor his staff removed any funding requests as it was the Board's decision on what was ultimately funded.
As in previous years, the Board agreed to not fund unmandated agencies with only a few exceptions. There was a general consensus to fund the disAbility Resource Center and the Thurman Brisben Homeless Shelter again this year. Bill Doyle, the Vice President of Finance at Rappahannock Community College (RCC), gave a short presentation explaining their funding request this year and why it was different. RCC asked for an additional $113 dollars this year compared to last year. While the Board listened, the general mood was that they saw no reason to pick apart his request but did appreciate his time and effort in presenting his request.
There was some discussion over King George County being a member of the Fredericksburg Regional Alliance (FRA) and how much that membership gave back to the County. There seemed to be some concern over the return on investment but the discussion somehow turned into another discussion on the defunct plan to bring natural gas to the Industrial Park. There was also some discussion of the large increase in funding requested from the Rappahannock Area Community Services Board (RACSB). At just over an extra $7,500 from last year, the Board felt like a presentation was in order to get a better understanding of why the request was so much larger and to learn more about what services they offer and how they benefit King George residents.
Dr. Young also reviewed the various line items that could, and would, impact the budget. The mandatory items included an unknown School Board budget, unknown health insurance increases, the Virginia Retirement System (VRS), and more. He also shared his desire to include optional items, such as the planned increase in County employee pay, four new employee positions, and a potential increase to the Supervisors salary. Much of this discussion was around the request for a truck inspector at the landfill to ensure trucks leaving the facility had no loose trash remaining in their trailers. Young said this used to be an existing position but was never back-filled when the previous employee left. He said he added this position due to the frequent complaints about trash along the roads near the landfill as well as main roads that trucks use to transport trash to the landfill. The Board balked a little bit and was more interested in looking to see if Waste Management could foot the bill. Dr. Young said he has already discussed the matter with them and it sounded like Waste Management felt the County should pay for it. In the end, the general consensus from the Board was to look at some way to share the cost of the inspector's salary between Waste Management and the County.
Next on the Agenda for the evening was a line-by-line review of three departments. Because the Social Services Director was on vacation, the only departments reviewed were Information Technology (IT) and Parks and Recreation. Chris Dines, Director of the IT Department, reviewed his budget page by page, line by line, and answered questions from the Board. When asked why there were so many licenses for Microsoft Office 365, Dines said it was for every County employee, not just the employees in the IT Department. The Board also questioned why he was paying for an air card for Travis Quesenberry, County Engineer. Dines said he needed a mobile connection when he was working in the field and didn't have a tablet that could do so.
Next up was Chris Clarke, Director of Parks and Recreation Department. His budget was split into four major sections; Administration, Citizen's Center, Athletics, and Programs. Clarke explained that because Athletics and Programs were self-sufficient with their funding, he wasn't going to review them. Under the Administration umbrella fell the majority of Clarke's budget. While nobody on the Board called attention to it, I noticed that of the fleet of vehicles used, only one was relatively new; a 2017 van. The other three vehicles used included a 2009 Ford Explorer and two vehicles from 2000. With half of his fleet nearly 20 years old, I predict a need for a new van next year.
When the flyers and brochures came up, most of the discussion focused on how the school system no longer allowed flyers to be sent home because of their use of the Peachjar tool. Peachjar is a system by which school systems, including King George County, can electronically distribute flyers. In other words, instead of sending flyers and newsletters home with students, they can be sent in a more environmentally friendly way. There was also a lengthy discussion regarding the need for a PO Box versus a mailbox outside the building. The general consensus seemed to be that simply installing a mailbox would save the County $200 per year. The Board questioned the need for so many cell phones but Clarke explained that those employees that needed to be contacted on evenings or weekends had them as well as those employees that were often in the field because of athletic programs.
One discussion that both departments shared was the travel and conference expenses. Similar to her question last year, Ruby Brabo questioned why Dines had such a small budget for conferences. Dines said that because his staff is so small, he rarely attends them unless they are nearby. When the Board asked Clarke about the conference fees that Dr. Young had removed from his budget, Clarke said Dr. Young made a fair point that as a very new employee he should maybe wait until next year to attend more events.
Clarke then moved into the Citizen's Center budget, noting that with recent bathroom renovations, there was a significant drop in revenue. He also said the construction at the King George Middle School and a leaky roof at King George Elementary School have impacted their athletics programs as well. Although Clarke didn't go into detail about it, his budget paperwork did explain that the Citizen's Center was frequently rented by various groups. Because of this, cleaning staff often worked odd hours, including past midnight on weekends, to clean the building immediately following an event.
Although not a part of the presented budget, it was brought up that the Old King George Middle School currently had no heat. Because of this, the water was turned off to prevent pipes from freezing. Due to the lack of water, Dr. Young said a porta-potty was brought in for those that still rent the building. He said although it wasn't ideal, it was a stop-gap measure until heat and water could be restored.
Future work sessions are scheduled for February 13th and 26th with the first meeting covering a line-by-line review of Social Services and expenditure reports and the second meeting will include a briefing from Davenport. Future work sessions beyond those will include a budget from the School Board and revenue reports.
Further Reading:
January 29, 2019 - A View From Outside The Citizen Budget Advisory Committee
On January 31, 2019, the Board of Supervisors and most of the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee met for their second Budget Work Session. Just like the previous Work Session, Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, repeated much of what was covered last year. While he and the Supervisors may have remembered the information from last year, it served as a good education for the citizens.
Dr. Young's review covered the differences between charities and outside agencies, mandated and unmandated agencies, and a table comparing the amounts requested by outside agencies last year and the actual amounts funded by the Board. Dr. Young also assured the Board that neither he nor his staff removed any funding requests as it was the Board's decision on what was ultimately funded.
As in previous years, the Board agreed to not fund unmandated agencies with only a few exceptions. There was a general consensus to fund the disAbility Resource Center and the Thurman Brisben Homeless Shelter again this year. Bill Doyle, the Vice President of Finance at Rappahannock Community College (RCC), gave a short presentation explaining their funding request this year and why it was different. RCC asked for an additional $113 dollars this year compared to last year. While the Board listened, the general mood was that they saw no reason to pick apart his request but did appreciate his time and effort in presenting his request.
There was some discussion over King George County being a member of the Fredericksburg Regional Alliance (FRA) and how much that membership gave back to the County. There seemed to be some concern over the return on investment but the discussion somehow turned into another discussion on the defunct plan to bring natural gas to the Industrial Park. There was also some discussion of the large increase in funding requested from the Rappahannock Area Community Services Board (RACSB). At just over an extra $7,500 from last year, the Board felt like a presentation was in order to get a better understanding of why the request was so much larger and to learn more about what services they offer and how they benefit King George residents.
Dr. Young also reviewed the various line items that could, and would, impact the budget. The mandatory items included an unknown School Board budget, unknown health insurance increases, the Virginia Retirement System (VRS), and more. He also shared his desire to include optional items, such as the planned increase in County employee pay, four new employee positions, and a potential increase to the Supervisors salary. Much of this discussion was around the request for a truck inspector at the landfill to ensure trucks leaving the facility had no loose trash remaining in their trailers. Young said this used to be an existing position but was never back-filled when the previous employee left. He said he added this position due to the frequent complaints about trash along the roads near the landfill as well as main roads that trucks use to transport trash to the landfill. The Board balked a little bit and was more interested in looking to see if Waste Management could foot the bill. Dr. Young said he has already discussed the matter with them and it sounded like Waste Management felt the County should pay for it. In the end, the general consensus from the Board was to look at some way to share the cost of the inspector's salary between Waste Management and the County.
Next on the Agenda for the evening was a line-by-line review of three departments. Because the Social Services Director was on vacation, the only departments reviewed were Information Technology (IT) and Parks and Recreation. Chris Dines, Director of the IT Department, reviewed his budget page by page, line by line, and answered questions from the Board. When asked why there were so many licenses for Microsoft Office 365, Dines said it was for every County employee, not just the employees in the IT Department. The Board also questioned why he was paying for an air card for Travis Quesenberry, County Engineer. Dines said he needed a mobile connection when he was working in the field and didn't have a tablet that could do so.
Next up was Chris Clarke, Director of Parks and Recreation Department. His budget was split into four major sections; Administration, Citizen's Center, Athletics, and Programs. Clarke explained that because Athletics and Programs were self-sufficient with their funding, he wasn't going to review them. Under the Administration umbrella fell the majority of Clarke's budget. While nobody on the Board called attention to it, I noticed that of the fleet of vehicles used, only one was relatively new; a 2017 van. The other three vehicles used included a 2009 Ford Explorer and two vehicles from 2000. With half of his fleet nearly 20 years old, I predict a need for a new van next year.
When the flyers and brochures came up, most of the discussion focused on how the school system no longer allowed flyers to be sent home because of their use of the Peachjar tool. Peachjar is a system by which school systems, including King George County, can electronically distribute flyers. In other words, instead of sending flyers and newsletters home with students, they can be sent in a more environmentally friendly way. There was also a lengthy discussion regarding the need for a PO Box versus a mailbox outside the building. The general consensus seemed to be that simply installing a mailbox would save the County $200 per year. The Board questioned the need for so many cell phones but Clarke explained that those employees that needed to be contacted on evenings or weekends had them as well as those employees that were often in the field because of athletic programs.
One discussion that both departments shared was the travel and conference expenses. Similar to her question last year, Ruby Brabo questioned why Dines had such a small budget for conferences. Dines said that because his staff is so small, he rarely attends them unless they are nearby. When the Board asked Clarke about the conference fees that Dr. Young had removed from his budget, Clarke said Dr. Young made a fair point that as a very new employee he should maybe wait until next year to attend more events.
Clarke then moved into the Citizen's Center budget, noting that with recent bathroom renovations, there was a significant drop in revenue. He also said the construction at the King George Middle School and a leaky roof at King George Elementary School have impacted their athletics programs as well. Although Clarke didn't go into detail about it, his budget paperwork did explain that the Citizen's Center was frequently rented by various groups. Because of this, cleaning staff often worked odd hours, including past midnight on weekends, to clean the building immediately following an event.
Although not a part of the presented budget, it was brought up that the Old King George Middle School currently had no heat. Because of this, the water was turned off to prevent pipes from freezing. Due to the lack of water, Dr. Young said a porta-potty was brought in for those that still rent the building. He said although it wasn't ideal, it was a stop-gap measure until heat and water could be restored.
Future work sessions are scheduled for February 13th and 26th with the first meeting covering a line-by-line review of Social Services and expenditure reports and the second meeting will include a briefing from Davenport. Future work sessions beyond those will include a budget from the School Board and revenue reports.
Further Reading:
January 29, 2019 - A View From Outside The Citizen Budget Advisory Committee
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