Budget Committee Amends “Premium Pay” & OKs Animal Expenses
JPs at the September 14 Budget & Finance Committee meeting approved $4,545 from the Animal Welfare Control fund for the Friends of the Faulkner County Animal Shelter, as well as the monthly appropriations ordinance.
The Committee, amid some confusion, also considered two ordinances giving “premium pay” to County employees from American Rescue Plan (ARP)* and CARES Act funds.
All committee members attended the 20-minute meeting. JP Tyler Pearson (D, Dist. 7) logged in online, as he has normally done during the COVID state of emergency that began June 29.
August Financial Report
Jennie Felling, Chief Deputy in the County Treasurer’s office, presented revenue reports for the County’s “big five” funds as of August 31,2021:
County General: $2,927,741
County Road: $4,712,491
County Road Sales Tax: $2,646,350
Animal Control: $1,336,318
Criminal Justice Sales Tax: $1,536,665
“We’re good with County General, and we’re good on sales tax. Scott will start next month on revenue projections,” she said.
Ordinance 21-26, Friends’ Vet Expenses
JP Jerry Boyer (R, Dist. 12) submitted invoices via Ordinance 21-26 for $4,545 in expenses for the Friends of the Faulkner County Animal Shelter, to be paid from the Animal Welfare Control fund. (Although JPs were given copies of the invoices, the public was not.)
The Friends paid Chestnut Animal Clinic for “some veterinary work … for a while,” Boyer said, and the “Friends ran out of money in their own Friends’ account.”
The expenses cover veterinary services associated with an animal hoarding situation back in April-May, 2021, and Boyer explained, “The Quorum Court has no contract with the Chestnut Animal Clinic.”
He requested that the Friends be reimbursed from the Animal Welfare Control fund, pointing out “we have a million-three in there….”
Boyer moved to send the Ordinance to the full Court, and JP Matt Brown (R, Dist. 8) seconded. The Committee voice voted unanimously in favor.
Ordinance 21-27, Appropriations
Brown moved to consider the monthly routine appropriations, Ordinance 21-27, and JP Randy Higgins (R, Dist. 2) provided the second.
Brown asked about the $8,328 revenue and transfer in Section 2, and Angie Wooley, Fiscal Officer for the Sheriff’s Department, explained that the Association of Arkansas Counties paid out insurance for a totaled vehicle.
The Committee voice voted unanimously to pass Ordinance 21-27 to the full Court.
Ordinance 21-28, Employee “Premium Pay” (ARP Funds)
Chair John Pickett (D, Dist. 11) said that Ordinance 21-28 and Ordinance 21-29 “are co-joined,” but provided no other details about these two Ordinances that deal with “premium pay” for Faulkner County employees. Boyer moved to hear Ordinance 21-28, and Brown provided the second to open the discussion.
Add County Retirees
Higgins said,
I’d probably like to add a bullet that would include County retirees who retired in 2020 during this period, probably at a pro-rated level…. That’s one thing that Conway County did do, because they went ahead and paid their 2020 retirees.
Brown agreed, and said he wanted to expand that to
not only retirees but essentially anyone who left County employment for any reason …. so long as it was … on good terms…. since the bonus is essentially paid for past performance and they performed as well. I mean, fair is fair….
County Clerk Margaret Darter explained,
My pay system won’t pay them if they’re not active, so I have to reactivate all these people. And we set up all these departments in these other funds, so it’s not just a line item, it’s just like we’ve got here [in the current Ordinances]; it’s got to tell me every detail that’s going to be required.
Then you’ll have to pay unemployment on them because you haven’t met your [$10,000] threshold of unemployment [compensation] for them….
So, if you bring that in, I have to report that income to the State and we haven’t met the threshold so that unemployment on that is going to be higher than the rest of the employees that have, you know, nine months of salary….
I mean, it’s not un-doable; there’ll be more expense with it.
When Pickett asked, “Can you make the adjustments,” Darter answered, “If that’s the Court’s desire, yes. It may take a couple weeks or longer” to prepare a new Ordinance.
She added later, “If you structure something as a premium pay … the employee is going to be taxed at a much higher rate than if you structure it as a one-time pay increase….”
Higgins moved to add retirees to the Ordinance and Pickett asked for a voice vote. JPs voice voted unanimously to approve the motion; however, Darter noted the lack of a second for the motion, and Pearson said “You can put me down.”
Darter then asked for a new vote on the amendment and, after more confusion, Pickett asked for another voice vote and JPs unanimously approved the amendment to add retirees to Ordinance 21-28.
Add “Employees Who’ve Left”
Brown moved to add “anyone who left during the time period in good standing” to the Ordinance, and Higgins provided the second. JPs voice voted unanimously to approve Brown’s amendment.
When Brown asked if “there is any mechanism to add Reserve deputies?” Higgins responded, “My view would be, I would rather us look for ways to provide the Unit some operating funds to help with some needs that they have, as opposed to individual compensation.”
At Pickett’s request, the Committee voice voted unanimously to send the amended Ordinance to the full Court for consideration.
Ordinance 21-29, Employee “Premium Pay” (CARES Act)
Pickett noted that Ordinance 21-29 is “the same issue as 21-28,” and Higgins moved to “amend 21-29 with the same amendments that we did with 21-28.” Pearson provided the second.
The Committee, with no further discussion, voice voted unanimously. Then Pickett declared, “All in favor of the amended Ordinance 21-29, indicate by saying ‘aye.'”
When Pearson called a point of order, saying the Committee should vote first on the amendment before approving the Ordinance, Pickett was confused again, saying, “I thought we just did…”
After Pearson explained again, Pickett then called for a new vote on the proposed amendment; JPs voice voted unanimously in favor.
Pickett then called to send amended Ordinance 21-29 to the full Court for consideration and the Committee voice voted again, unanimously in favor.
Before adjourning the 20-minute meeting, Pickett announced a Budget & Finance Committee meeting to be held at 5:45 pm before the September 21 Quorum Court meeting “to consider Ordinance 21-30,” but gave no other details.
* The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 provides $1.92 trillion in federal “American Recovery funds” to many entities, including state and local governments impacted by COVID, under some general guidelines. The terms are interchangeable in general use. Faulkner County receives around $24 million in ARP funding through the program.
Videos edited from original video on Faulkner County’s YouTube channel.)
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