June 16, 1993 - 7:00 PM - County Board of Commissioners Meeting Minutes (Recessed)

June 16, 1993The Johnston County Board of Commissioners resumed session Monday, June 16, 1993, at700 pm in the Commissioners Room, Johnston County Courthouse Annex, Smithfield, NorthCarolina, with the following members presentNorman C Denning, Chairman, Frank B Holding, Vice Chairman, James W Cash, John MBooker, DVM, Jerry F Wood, DDS, Eleanor N Creech, and Cecil M MassengillAbsent NoneAlso Present Richard B Self, County Manager, Joyce H Ennis, Clerk to the Board, and JohnR Massey, Finance DirectorThe Chairman called the meeting to order and the following business was transacted1 Proposed 1993 -1994 County BudgetThe Board heard comments from the following departments and agenciesA Social Services DepartmentEarl Marett, Director of Social Services, addressed the Board concerning the Social ServicesDepartments budget requests for the upcoming fiscal year He explained the largest increase in hisbudget is in the area of public assistance entitlement programs that the County is mandated to fundThe Countys share of the cost of Medicaid has increased approximately 300,000 due primarily tothe rising cost of medical services and the increased number of citizens eligible for assistanceHe stated he is requesting five new positions one child protective services worker which isanticipated to be 100 funded by the state, and four income maintenance case workers which are50 funded by the state The additional ICM caseworkers are needed because of the increased caseload throughout the department, especially in childrens Medicaid and AFDCB Health DepartmentDr L S Woodall, Health Director, spoke with the Board concerning the 1993 -94 budgetrequests for the Health Department He commented on the growing number of patients and the needfor the following additional personnel a health educator to hold clinics on illness prevention; a clerktypist to relieve the clinical help; a WIC nutritionist 12 position which would increase the WICcaseload to make this program self- supporting, and a Spanish interpreterDr Woodall further commented on the problem of keeping trained personnel in JohnstonCounty because neighboring counties offer higher salaries He asked the Board to consider a salaryincrease for all employees to make the County a more competitive employerChairman Denning, who is also Chairman of the Health Board, remarked on the excellent jobDr Woodall and his staff are doing and invited the other Commissioners to visit the HealthDepartmentC Sheriffs DepartmentSheriff Freddy Narron addressed the Board concerning his budget request for 1993 -94 Hethanked the Board for their support and funding for 1992 -93 noting the department has had asuccessful year even though the caseload has grown at a rapid rate He pointed out law enforcementwork increases in direct correlation to the increased number of abuse cases identified by SocialServices, the number of parents identified and located in Child Support, and the number of juvenileproblems in the schools There are more people living in rural subdivisions in Johnston County thanevery before, and these densely populated areas demand more service from law enforcementSheriff Narron asked the Board to allow him to keep the two deputies who have been paidfrom expended federal grant money and, in addition, he requested one new position to create a formalcivil division in his department He explained this would relieve the patrol deputies from civil workand allow them more time to patrol densely populated areas and assist the detectives in the criminalside of the departments workIn conclusion, he stated he would hate to lose any of his current employees which, in hisopinion, are well trained, committed to their jobs, and provide excellent service for the County Herequested the Board consider a decent pay increase for all employeesD Emergency ManagementDewayne West, Director of Emergency Management, spoke briefly about the ambulance billingprogram implemented over the past fiscal year He reported the program has been successful and has?1generated much needed revenue for the rescue squads The operation, although self- supporting, is bothcostly and time consuming with two full -time employees handling approximately 450 to 500 documentsdailyMr West reported that earlier in the year the rescue squads requested the County change theirpolicy for assisting with ambulance purchases The Rescue Association has now asked that the Boarddisregard that request and continue with the previous policy of making two annual donations to thesquads on a rotating basisThe Commissioners agreed to consider both request before making a decisionE CommunicationsAl Gaskill, Director of Communications, reported the rural addressing program has beencompleted countywide and all post offices are using the new addresses Most of the County hasEnhanced 911 service at this time, and those areas not connected will soon be added to the system Hethanked the Board for implementing the E -911 system in Johnston CountyF LibraryJoyce Mitchell, Director of the Public Library, informed the Board that library use has risen by18 over the past year She thanked them for their past support and asked the Board to consider thefunding requested for 1993 -942 Budget DiscussionChairman Norman C Denning commented that having seen the new requests, the Board mustact in a responsible and conservative effort in their decision making He noted the two crucial issueswhich need to be addressed before adopting the 1993 -94 budget are school appropriations and employeesalaries He asked the Board members for their feelings on these issuesCommissioner Eleanor N Creech responded she feels that County employees are the mostconservative part of the County system She continued by saying the majority are hard- working,dedicated employees who often go beyond the call of dutyCommissioner Creech recommended a one -step salary increase 42 for all countyemployeesCommissioner Frank B Holding spoke of the school appropriations and suggested the SchoolBoard be asked to come to the next budget meeting to further discuss their requestsCommissioner Cecil M Massengill stressed he would not be comfortable making any decisionsuntil the full budget is considered, and would not want the public to perceive that decisions have alreadybeen madeThe Board concurred and remarked on the many demands for the limited funds available Theyagreed to meet on Monday, June 21st and again on Wednesday, June 23rd for further budget review,and asked the County Manager to invite the School Board to attend the Monday night sessionChairman Denning asked Board members to again search the proposed budget for possible spendingcutsUpon a motion by Commissioner John M Booker, seconded by Commissioner Frank BHolding and carried by unanimous vote, the Board recessed until 700 pm Monday, June 21, 1993Norman C Denning, ChairmanJoyce H Ennis, ClerkDetailsAnnotationsEntry PropertiesModified11192013 14917 PMCreated572003 94051 AMTemplateMinutesFieldsMinutes - TypeRecessedMinutes - Date6161993Book19