June 12, 1991 - 7:30 PM - County Board of Commissioners Meeting Minutes (Recessed)

June 12, 1991The Johnston County Board of Commissioners resumed regular session Wednesday,June 12, 1991, at 730 pm in the Commissioners Room, Johnston County Courthouse Annex,Smithfield, North Carolina, with the following members presentNorman C Denning, Chairman, Frank B Holding, Vice Chairman, James W Cash,John M Booker, DVM, and Jerry F Wood, DDSAbsent NoneAlso Present Richard B Self, County Manager, Eleanor N Creech, Clerk to theBoard, and Joyce H Ennis, Deputy Clerk to the BoardThe Chairman called the meeting to order and the following business was transactedII 1 Solid Waste Collection Site User Fee - ComplaintWilliam Edwards met with the Board concerning the proposed 25 solid waste disposalfee scheduled to go into effect July 1, 1991 He asked the Commissioners to reconsiderimplementing a user fee since, in his opinion, the fee will encourage dumping along theroadsides, in woods, and on other peoples property He recommended any necessary fundsneeded to operate the landfill come from ad valorem tax moniesCommissioner Frank B Holding explained the fee isprimarily to offsetthe cost ofburying solid wasteat the landfill in accordance withmandatedState and FederalregulationsA fee was set forcollection site users in order toequalizethe cost among allcitizens, asmunicipal residentsare charged by the towns HeinformedMr Edwards thatthe SheriffsDepartment now hasa solid waste enforcement officerto helpprevent roadside dumpingCommissioner John M Booker and Chairman Norman C Denning also spoke of thechallenge the County faces in solving the problems of solid waste management6sJune 12, 1991 Continued2 Budget ReviewThe Board continued review and discussion of the 1991 -92 proposed budgetSocial ServicesEarl Marett, Director of Social Services, reviewed his departments proposed budgetin the amount of 45,554,940, and explained the Countys portion, 4,019,558, is 178 higherthan in 1990 -91 He stated the increase is largely due to mandated public assistance paymentsfor AFDC, Medicaid, and State County special assistance programs The number of cases havegrown dramatically over the past few years due to the economy, expansion of programs, andinflation As a result of recent court ruling, client applications must be processed within alimited time in order to avoid penalties Additional staff is needed to process applications,investigate reports, and provide treatment servicesMr Marett stressed the need for Johnston County to provide competitive salaries andbenefits for employees in order to attract and keep qualified workers He stated his agencyis rarely able to hire experienced people due to the Countys low salary entry level, and ittakes two years with close supervision to train employees to the level necessary to avoidfines and penalties Unfortunately, in many cases, Johnston County becomes a trainingground as employees move on to higher paying jobs with better benefits He asked the Boardto consider improving fringe benefits as well as employee salariesHospiceCommissioner James W Cash reported he has talked with Hospital President, LeeFarnell, about funding for Hospice and recommended the Board appropriate 35,000 to thisprogramThe Board instructed the County Manager to add Hospice, in the amount of 35,000,to the 1991 -92 proposed budgetEmployee Salaries - BenefitsSheriff Freddy Narron commented on Johnston County employees benefits as comparedwith the State and surrounding cities and counties He pointed out when these employees arereported as receiving no cost of living increase, it does not mean they are getting nothingbecause they have other plans in place such as longevity and merit pay He respectfullyasked the Board to study the entire fringe benefit package when considering recommendationsfor Johnston County employees in the 1991 -92 budgetThe Board thanked Sheriff Narron for his comments and briefly discussed the impactthat the general economy and anticipated State legislation will have on the budget Theyasked County Manager, Richard Self, to outline the local option Z cent additional sales taxproposed by the General Assembly and how it would effect Johnston CountyProposed Local Option a Cent Sales TaxMr Self explained the z cent tax would be distributed based on percentage ofreimbursements received by the County during 1989 -90, not point -of -sale or population asother sales tax revenue He pointed out the amount received, 1,914,904, would not offset theamount of reimbursements the County could be losing in intangible tax, reimbursement salestax on food stamps, 50 homestead tax exemption, and reimbursement of inventory tax - atotal of 2,030,000 This would create a shortfall of 115,096; however, if the tax is notlevied, the County would lose the entire 2,030,000 He indicated the General Assemblyshould decide on this matter by June 17th so that counties can schedule and hold publichearings in time for the tax to become effective by July 1st3 Recreation Grant Extension Clayton Band BoostersUpon a motion by Commissioner James W Cash, seconded by Commissioner Jerry FWood and carried by unanimous vote, the Board granted a 90 -day extension on recreationgrant #9001 -10 for the Clayton Band BoostersExecutive Session IIUpon amotion byCommissioner Frank B Holding, seconded by CommissionerJerry FWood and carriedby unanimous vote, the Board recessed regular session to meet inexecutivesession for thepurpose ofdiscussing acquisition of real propertyRegular-SessionUpon amotion byCommissioner Jerry F Wood, seconded by CommissionerJohn MBooker and carried by unanimous vote, the Board adjourned executive session andresumedregular session1•June 12, 1991 ContinuedCommissioner John M Booker moved the Board recess until Monday, June 17, 1991, at730 pmCommissioner Frank B Holding seconded the motion which carried by unanimous voteNorman C Denning, Chairmaii4oH Ennis, Deputy ClerkDetailsAnnotationsEntry PropertiesModified11192013 14314 PMCreated3202003 85555 AMTemplateMinutesFieldsMinutes - TypeRecessedMinutes - Date6121991Book19