Minutes 06-06-2024 - Budget Work Session

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4 Travis Myren reviewed the budget amendment on the slide above and provided information on funding the crisis response team by grant. A motion was made by Commissioner Fowler, seconded by Vice-Chair Greene, to approve budget amendment OP-091. VOTE: UNANIMOUS Commissioner Hamilton reviewed budget amendment OPER-001 as detailed in the table on the slide above, which she sponsored. She said her goal is to decrease the tax rate increase associated with this budget. She said the money in the budget that has been accumulating from Carol Woods should be spent to support services consistent with the master aging plan. She said that she is not looking for that money to spend on other items. She said it is important to prioritize money given the needs in the community. Commissioner McKee said he understands the principle of not holding funds in reserve or building account balances but thinks the donation in the account it sits in will be designated to be spent by the Department of Aging on their initiatives. He said they received a memo from Janice Tyler accounting for why the balance is there now. He said it is because they received federal funds that had to be spent. He said those funds are no longer there and these funds will be spent faster than they were in previous years. He said he is also concerned with taxes, but it is his understanding that this and the next one would only reduce the tax rate by .17% of one penny. He said that will not make a difference. He said that he did speak with Commissioner Hamilton earlier today on this and she is aware of his concern. He asked if Commissioner Hamilton would consider withdrawing or amending this to some degree. Vice-Chair Greene said she shares Commissioner McKee's concerns and appreciates the wish to find every penny for the tax rate. She said that the MAP [Master Aging Plan] does support seniors through initiatives as well as salary time. She said this is private money from Carol Woods and they donate it to support the MAP and that she is uncomfortable shifting money out of a pot that for years has been donated for this purpose. She said she is aware that staff has already taken $75,000 and in either case, she thinks this is not the best practice. Commissioner Fowler said she understands where Commissioner Hamilton's concerns come from, but she said it would have been brought from the County Manager if it had been viable. She said that it will not make any major dent in tax rate, and it is not an ongoing endless resource that could help year after year. She said better clarity is needed and if funds are saved, there should be a line item, so it is not confusing of where they are going. She recommended that she would like to see the plan for the remaining amount. Vice-Chair Greene said the MAP meetings are dynamic meetings and decisions are made during those meetings, so it is impossible to name what they are held for 12 months in advance. Commissioner Richards said she was surprised by the amount of money that has been donated. She said she has a concern about transparency about how those funds are applied and said that it is confusing that the Department on Aging has ongoing programs that are executed by existing staff how donations are leveraged to either enhance that or create new programs. She said that what bothers her about the amendment is the fact that the Board should provide that as guidance to the department rather than withdrawing the county commitment from the fund. She said that she feels they have a responsibility for those funds. Chair Bedford asked how the $175,000 grant money and gifts from other revenues are included in this budget. Kirk Vaughn said $175,000 is in the budget and shown as a revenue and the remaining 100K is in the grant funds. He said they do not have as much of an ability to anticipate those other revenues, so they do budget amendments if and when it is necessary. Chair Bedford asked how these additional dollars interact with the expenditures.