PARKERSBURG - Wood County officials made their case Tuesday for 2010-2011 budget requests.
The county's preliminary budget is due in Charleston for review by the end of the month. The county fiscal year runs July 1 to June 30.
Prosecutor Jason Wharton made his presentation for two possible budget scenarios. One, he termed a "flatline" budget, seeks increases totaling $3,855. The second option asks for $45,000 to hire an additional assistant prosecutor.
"This attorney would be available to specialize in civil issues that arise, such as personnel issues, collection of delinquent accounts relating to the DRC and home confinement, and they would attend county commission and planning commission meetings as well as represent the other county offices," Wharton said, noting he had a staffer who could move into that position and an entry level new attorney would then be retained if the commission grants the request.
The total assistants' budget, without the new position, would be $472,393; secretaries salaries, unchanged totals $242,599.
Wharton pointed out the county commission spent $25,149 last year on outside legal counsel and that expense could be saved with the new position.
"The prosecutor is statutoraly counsel for the county commission, and even if we had this attorney available to us at all times as well as representing the other offices, there might be times when there is a conflict. That would make it very difficult and we'd probably still end up needing outside counsel," commission President Rick Modesitt noted.
County Clerk Jamie Six said his budget proposal contained no increases over last year.
Under the elections line item, Six said although requested last year, no pay increase was provided for pollworkers.
"They haven't had any increase for five years," he said. Of 37 counties in the state surveyed, Wood County pays $165 for training and election day work per pollworker. Kanawha pays $225, Cabell, of similar size, pays its pollworkers $200. The highest paid was Jefferson County at $300 and the lowest was Barbour at $100.
"If we can, I think we should raise the pay, it might be an incentive to get more people to be pollworkers," commissioner Blair Couch said.
The total projected budget for 2010-2011 under elections is $178,086.
Six also noted although Modesitt had stated publicly the county owes the Public Employee Retirement System $400,000, the original amount owed was $285,000, and is now actually closer to $96,000, with $71,000 of that coming from general funds.
"It's still money we have to come up with that we didn't have to have last year," Modesitt commented.
Six noted the revenue stream generated by his office through fees is two-thirds of his budget. Six's total budget for 2010-2011 is $892,934.
Circuit Court Clerk Carole Jones reiterated a concern she's expressed over the years that her deputies' salaries are not comparable to those of other county employees and she provided comparison salaries and suggested salaries as part of her budget package for the new year.
"In accordance with our present economic situation and your letter, I have tried to be conservative while also being realistic in requesting what is necessary to provide the services that we are required to provide for the courts and the public," Jones said. She also asked for a 50-cent per hour raise for two part-timers, bringing them to $8.50 an hour. Jones' total budget request for the new year is $667,768.
Wood County Assessor Rich Shaffer requested the same budget as last year.
"I would like to see a cost-of-living pay increase for my employees if you grant that this year," he noted.
Sheriff Jeff Sandy is scheduled to meet with the commission at 11 a.m., Thursday on his budget request.
