June 18, 2003 - 7:00 PM - County Board of Commissioners Meeting Minutes

10 356 MEETING OF THE JOHNSTON COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS June 18 , 2003 The Johnston County Board of Commissioners met in recessed session on Wednesday , June 18 , 2003 , at 7 00 pm in the Commissioners Meeting Room , Johnston County Courthouse Annex , Smithfield , North Carolina , with the following members present Present James H Langdon , Jr , Chairman , Cookie Pope , Vice Chairman , Thomas M Moore , Allen L Mims , Jr , Wade M Stewart , W Ray Woodall , and Jeffrey P Carver Absent None Also Present Rick J Hester , County Manager , Joyce H Ennis , Clerk to the Board , Mark Payne , County Attorney , and John R Massey , Finance Officer The Chairman opened the recessed meeting and the following business was transacted 1 School Board Budget Presentation Fred Bartholomew , chairman of the Johnston County Board of Education , presented the School’s funding th requests for the upcoming year He noted that Johnston County is now the 8 largest school district in the State with an expected increase in enrollment for 2003 - 04 school year of 1300 students Mr Bartholomew pointed out there are certain expenses the Board of Education has no control over including growth in student population , operating costs for new schools , salary and benefit increases , utility costs , and additional transportation vehicles Also , it is anticipated that with the current shortfall in Raleigh , State funding to local schools will be cut for the new year He went over the School Board’s priorities for local funding and made the following requests of the County lt; Transfer of 2 million from Capital Outlay to Current Expense , and make this a permanent transfer lt; Fund buses vehicles at 1,531,015 above the normal Capital Outlay allocation lt; Adjust the funding formula to use 35 inflation based on 1,300 new students lt; Fully fund phase one of the teacher salary supplement with an additional 156,503 Approval of the above items would require an increase over the County Manager’s recommended budget of 1,531,015 in Capital Outlay and 787,213 in Current Expense Mr Bartholomew concluded by listing some future funding priorities , including the establishment of a task force to review the schools ’ needs He noted the County must spend additional funds in the future in recruiting and retaining good teachers , and maintaining the existing school facilities Funding for “ Closing the Gap ” initiatives will also be needed , and another bond issue for construction of new schools as the student population continues to grow He introduced other School Board members and offered to answer any questions the Board might have Commissioner Allen L Mims , Jr asked why the School Board was requesting a transfer of 2 million from Capital Outlay to Current Expense when they were also asking for additional capital funds Mr Bartholomew and School Superintendent , Dr Jim Causby , responded this has been done over the past few years , and now the Current Expense budget depends on this money to meet the needs Commissioner Wade M Stewart asked if the request to make the transfer permanent would mean the schools could operate with 14 million per year in Capital Outlay Mr Bartholomew’s response was no , the schools need the extra money and would like for it to be figured into the formula Commissioner Mims suggested it might be time to consider four - track year round schools since 30 more children can attend without additional buildings and buses Mr Bartholomew noted the School Board is not opposed to year round schools ; however , there has been no indication the public is interested Commissioner Thomas M Moore stated , in his opinion , the School Board should initiate the idea and noted it has been successful in Wake County Commissioner Mims stated he would like to see the two boards get someone from Wake County to come down and talk about the program and how it has impacted the cost of education A discussion ensued about the expenses related to teacher supplements and signing bonuses In response to a question from Commissioner Jeffrey P Carver , Dr Causby noted that teachers who receive a signing bonus must teach in Johnston County for one year Page357 June 18 , 2003 Continued Commissioner Thomas M Moore asked how a 35 rate of inflation could be justified since the actual inflation figure is much lower School Board member , Kay Carroll , explained the rate in the formula was never meant to be the actual inflation rate , it was put there to keep the funding in balance since there was no growth built in for the capital outlay Commissioner Moore pointed out there has been a tremendous growth in both the capital expense and the debt service over the past few years He questioned how long the County could continue to afford this type of increase Commissioner Wade M Stewart suggested the people who were involved in developing the Barents model get together again to update the figures and revise the formula if needed It was noted the County has consistently given more to the Schools than the model indicated If the schools are funded this year even at the recommended amount , the County will have allocated 13,000,000 more than the agreed upon formula over the past six years Following further discussion , Commissioner Wade M Stewart moved the Board agree to fund the school system for FY 2003 - 04 as follows lt; 156,503 to fully fund phase one of teacher salary supplement lt; Additional 1,531,015 to fund buses transportation vehicles lt; Adjust the inflation factor in the formula to 35 lt; Figure growth at 1300 additional students in the funding formula lt; Transfer 2,000,000 from Capital Outlay to Current Expense Commissioner Cookie Pope seconded the motion Discussion It was noted the issues of funding school buses and supplements in the future need to be looked at early and carefully The Chairman agreed and suggested a task force be formed Commissioner Thomas M Moore stated that last year he said he would not vote again for the 2 million transfer from Capital Outlay to Current Expense For that reason , he could not support the motion He also questioned the use of 35 inflation in the formula Commissioner Allen L Mims , Jr voiced his support for education , but noted he has some problems with the way the funding is done He noted the model says growth plus inflation , and if the percentage figure does not represent inflation , it should not be called inflation He asked that the motion be amended to say growth of 1300 students plus true inflation of 2 , and then allocate an additional 15 for this year only Commissioner Stewart agreed to the amendment , Commissioner Pope concurred The amended motion for funding schools for FY 2003 - 04 was as follows lt; 156,503 to fully fund phase one of teacher salary supplement lt; Additional 1,531,015 to fund buses transportation vehicles lt; Use a true inflation factor in the formula of 2 lt; Allocate an additional 15 to the formula for this year only lt; Figure growth at 1300 additional students in the funding formula lt; Transfer 2,000,000 from Capital Outlay to Current Expense The motion passed by the following vote Ayes James H Langdon , Jr , Cookie Pope , Wade M Stewart , Allen L Mims , Jr , Jeffrey P Carver , and W Ray Woodall Nays Thomas M Moore Funding for Buses Transportation Vehicles to Come from Existing Fund Balance Commissioner Cookie Pope moved the Board approve the following budget amendment to take the 1,531,015 for school buses transportation vehicles from the existing fund balance Commissioner W Ray Woodall seconded the motion , which carried by the following vote Ayes James H Langdon , Jr , Cookie Pope , Wade M Stewart , Allen L Mims , Jr , Jeffrey P Carver , and W Ray Woodall Nays Thomas M MoorePage358 June 18 , 2003 Continued Education FUND BUDGET LINE ITEM REQUESTED CHANGE CODE CLASSIFICATION EXPENDITURE INCREASE DECREASE 10 63001004 Public School Capital Outlay 1,531,01500 FUND BUDGET LINE ITEM REQUESTED CHANGE CODE CLASSIFICATION REVENUE INCREASE DECREASE 10 460033990 Fund Balance Appropriated 1,531,01500 2 Clayton Parks & Recreation - Request for Extension of Recreation Grant Upon a motion by Commissioner Thomas M Moore , seconded by Commissioner W Ray Woodall and carried by unanimous vote , the Board approved a six month extension for the Clayton Parks & Recreation 2002 - 03 recreation grant 3 Budget Amendments Approved Upon a motion by Commissioner W Ray Woodall , seconded by Commissioner Wade M Stewart and carried by unanimous vote , the Board approved the following budget amendments Special Appropriations FUND BUDGET LINE ITEM REQUESTED CHANGE CODE CLASSIFICATION EXPENDITURE INCREASE DECREASE 10 58556355 Jo Co Juvenile Crime Prevention 4,23900 FUND BUDGET LINE ITEM REQUESTED CHANGE CODE CLASSIFICATION REVENUE INCREASE DECREASE 10 585534177 Community Based Alternatives 4,23900 Sheriff Juvenile Restitution Program FUND BUDGET LINE ITEM REQUESTED CHANGE CODE CLASSIFICATION EXPENDITURE INCREASE DECREASE 10 51307400 Capital Outlay 11,00000 FUND BUDGET LINE ITEM REQUESTED CHANGE CODE CLASSIFICATION REVENUE INCREASE DECREASE 10 513034102 State Juvenile Restitution 11,00000 Sheriff’s Office FUND BUDGET LINE ITEM REQUESTED CHANGE CODE CLASSIFICATION EXPENDITURE INCREASE DECREASE 10 51007414 Capital Outlay - Sheriff’s Special 3,95700 FUND BUDGET LINE ITEM REQUESTED CHANGE CODE CLASSIFICATION REVENUE INCREASE DECREASE 10 510032106 Controlled Substance Tax 3,95700 Social Services FUND BUDGET LINE ITEM REQUESTED CHANGE CODE CLASSIFICATION EXPENDITURE INCREASE DECREASE 10 61101900 Crisis Intervention Programs 40,00000 FUND BUDGET LINE ITEM REQUESTED CHANGE CODE CLASSIFICATION REVENUE INCREASE DECREASE 10 610034123 DSS Administration 40,00000Page359 June 18 , 2003 Continued 4 Loan for Airport Authority Approved Upon a motion by Commissioner W Ray Woodall , seconded by Commissioner Thomas M Moore and carried by unanimous vote , the Board approved a loan in the amount of 125,000 to the Johnston County Airport Authority , with the funds to come from the current year’s fund balance Commissioner Thomas M Moore seconded the motion , which carried by unanimous vote The Board agreed to let the County Manager work out the terms of the loan 5 Johnston County to be Exempt from Office of Coroner Upon a motion by Commissioner Thomas M Moore , seconded by Commissioner W Ray Woodall and carried by unanimous vote , the Board agreed to ask our local legislators to present a bill to make Johnston County exempt from the requirement of having a coroner’s position Commissioner W Ray Woodall seconded the motion , which carried by unanimous vote 6 Jail Administration Budget - Cost for Inmates Commissioner Wade M Stewart mentioned the requested funds in the budget for provisions for the inmates Sheriff Steve Bizzell explained that in addition to food and basic provisions , the County is responsible for dental and medical costs which includes all medicines for the inmates In response to a question from Commissioner Cookie Pope concerning the length of stay of the average inmate , Sheriff Bizzell noted several with murder charges have been in the County Jail for over a year , and a few have been there for more than two and one - half years waiting for their case to go to court He noted the County spent 7,300 recently in medical expenses for one inmate , and 575 on another’s teeth Board members thanked the Sheriff for the good job he is doing , and congratulated his narcotics division for the number of successful drug raids recently Board Recesses There being no further business , Commissioner Cookie Pope moved the Board recess until Tuesday , June 24 , 2003 at 12 noon Commissioner W Ray Woodall seconded the motion , which carried by unanimous vote ________________________________________ James H Langdon , Jr , Chairman _____________________________ Joyce H Ennis , Clerk to the BoardPage