NORWICH – His hand gesture was difficult to decipher, and some say he put up four fingers, but Chenango County Finance Committee Chairman Lawrence Wilcox, R-Oxford, didn’t want to confirm his predictions about the exact amount of surplus that will be needed to keep the average tax rate low for the coming year.
Finance Committee Vice Chairman Dennis Brown, D-Pharsalia, did, however. He estimated aloud at the meeting of the Chenango County Board of Supervisors last Tuesday that between $3 and $4 million would be needed.
Without final budget calculations and pension rates locked in, the county’s 25-year veteran Treasurer William B. Evans was also reluctant to pinpoint an amount. Later in the week, he said reaching in for between $3 and $3.5 million was likely.
October’s county board meeting was the longest meeting of the year for good reason. At the start, surplus, which Evans fondly refers to as the county’s “rainy day fund,” stood at $18.1. After nearly two hours, and by the time lawmakers left the room, it was indeed pouring. Measures adopted gouged out $5 million from the pot.
A compensation schedule awarding employees with 1.5 percent raises across the board, their pension and health insurance benefit increases, and this year’s shortfall in health insurance put huge dents in available surplus.
More than a couple of supervisors have pointed out that, at the government’s current spending rate, it won’t take too many years before $13 million becomes zero, leaving nothing to cover an unexpected emergency or capital building project.
Building up to this month’s full board gathering, budget makers in committee have been scrutinizing large increases in retirement, health insurance, social services, and public works. The budget for public safety has yet to be fully calculated.
Evans indicated some optimism that supervisors directed the Personnel Department to reopen two employee union contracts that set between 3 and 4.5 percent raises next year, and to hold firm in negotiations with law enforcement and corrections bargaining units still underway.
Chenango County Personnel Department Director Bonnie Carrier said governments may request that labor contracts be reopened, but it’s only the union representative who may actually initiate the procedure.
Supervisor Wilcox cautioned that revisiting contracts might reopen additional health plan negotiations.
“I don’t know what if anything can be done with the unions. But, we need to be very cautions about not opening up more than we wish,” he said.
Wilcox would, instead, continue combing through departments for possible savings and, perhaps, cut those that aren’t state mandated such as cooperative extension, mental health, the arts and economic development.
“Those are the things we don’t want to do because they affect the people of Chenango County,” he said.
Evans is quick to state that Chenango County is better positioned than most. “We have asked for less than 1 percent average increases in the tax levy over the last five years. I’m not sure there are too many places around us that can say that,” he said.
Despite Board Chairman Richard B. Decker’s vow to cut expenses this year, and a concerted effort by Democrat supervisors to freeze non-union workers’ raises, “little has been done to control costs,” Supervisor Peter C. Flanagan, D-Preston, said following the board meeting. Flanagan led the unsuccessful endeavor earlier this week to freeze increases and made the referral to Personnel to reopen labor contracts.
The most likely incoming treasurer, William C. Craine, R-Sherburne, (who is running unopposed in November) voted alongside the Democrats to keep 2010’s compensation rates at the same level in 2011.
Even though some county departments have significantly decreased their rosters over the last several years, the actual number of Chenango County government employees grew from 575 in September of 2005 to 590 in September of this year.
Another indirect hit to surplus would be about $250,000 needed for overtime this year at the Chenango County Jail. Although the amount was absorbed within Sheriff Ernest Cutting’s 2010 budget, the switch leaves less at the end of the year to fall to surplus.
Sheriff Cutting pointed to more inmates at the jail causing the additional overtime. He also said five, part-time positions were vacant and will be for another six months before recruits could be hired and trained, leading to additional fund needed through April. The poor economic climate has resulted in more alcohol, drug abuse and crimes in general, he said.
“It’s desperate times. People need to alleviate stress and pressures. They commit crimes; arrests go up; there are more people in jail,” he said.
There were about 127 inmates incarcerated at the Upper Ravine Road facility in Norwich last week.