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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - 19950606APPROVED 8/22/95 MINUTES ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS BUDGET PUBLIC HEARING JUNE 6, 1995 The Orange County Board of Commissioners held a Public Hearing on the Manager's recommended 1995-1996 Budget on Monday, June 6, 1995 at 7:30 p.m. in the Orange Water and Sewer Authority Community Meeting Room, Carrboro, North Carolina. COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Moses Carey, Jr., and Commissioners Don Willhoit, Alice Gordon, Bill Crowther and Stephen Halkiotis. STAFF PRESENT: County Manager John M. Link, Jr., Assistant County Manager Rod Visser, Deputy Clerk to the Board Kathy Baker. (Other staff members will be identified appropriately below). Chair Carey convened the meeting at 7:35 p.m. John Link outlined the 1995-1996 proposed budget. In summary, he stated that the total proposed budget cost is $71,871,924. This is a 7.750 increase over last year. The current expense appropriation for the schools will increase from 18.8 million to 20.4 million. This is an increase of $1.4 million over the 1994-95 appropriation. The per pupil allocation would increase from $1,451 to $1,520. A 2.4o cost of living adjustment for County employees is also being recommended, as is a Career Growth Recognition Award of approximately 1.250 for employees whose work performance is rated effective or higher. The budget does not include any new employees, however, two currently authorized positions in the Tax Assessor's office are being recommended for reassignment to areas identified as urgent priorities through the budget process. THERE WERE NO QUESTIONS AND/OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS THE MEETING WAS OPENED FOR QUESTIONS AND/OR COMMENTS FROM CITIZENS Kim Hoke, with the Chapel Hill-Carrboro School System, requested that the school's budget request be fully funded. She mentioned that the Middle School After-School Project is an extremely important service which the schools provide free of charge. The Elementary School After School Project is paid for by the families who use the service. She mentioned that there is a waiting list for some of the elementary school programs because of lack of space. Alice Sharpe, a member of the Junior League of Durham & Orange County, spoke in support of funding the Middle School After School Program. She feels that money spent at this level is a proven deterrent to youth crime. Ed Bedford, a member of a School Governance Committee, requested that the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Schools budget request be fully funded. In addition he requested an increase of at least $750,000 for the at- risk and special needs students, as well as funds for some of the recommendations made by the Blue Ribbon Task Force. Linda Newmark, a parent with three children in the school system, requested that the budget be fully funded. She mentioned that the high school is currently housing 2400 students and was originally built for only 1600. She believes that this is a very bad time to hold the line on school spending. The overcrowding will continue in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro system unless the community and elected officials are willing to aggressively meet those needs now. Steve Wallace mentioned that he was working with the D.A.R.E. program and that he is a member of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro D.A.R.E. review committee. He distributed a fact sheet which indicated that this program is not accomplishing its goal of reducing drug use among the youth and that drug use is on the increase. He stated that the Interdisciplinary Curriculum "Alcohol and Other Drugs" (A.O.D.) for Grades K-5 is the program endorsed by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. The A.O.D. program is not being used because the D.A.R.E. program is already in place. The Town of Chapel Hill has begun an evaluation of all alternatives. This report is expected to be completed in the fall of this year. The cost per child for the D.A.R.E. program, when the salary of both the officer and teacher is included, is $150.00 per child, per year. He asked that the Board of Commissioners consider requesting that the schools implement the A.O.D. Program and discontinue the D.A.R.E. program. Commissioner Carey asked if the A.O.D. program has been implemented by other school systems across the State. He requested that the school officials gather information about statewide use of the A.O.D. program and report on the results of both the D.A.R.E. and the A.O.D. program's success rate in terms of lowering drug use among youth. Annette Henry spoke in support of the Radio Reading Program. This program supports many listeners who are isolated and live alone. Over 59 hours of local programming are produced each week for the 75 Orange County recipients. This service is also available in each of the hospital rooms at UNC Memorial Hospitals. Judge Mario Peronnie spoke in support of this Radio Reading Program. Both he and his wife use this service. Without this service they would both be deprived of much information which appears in newspapers and other print sources. They would be unable to keep up with local politics, town and county issues and other information necessary to stay up-to-date with the community. Barbara Delon, a parent and Chapel Hill resident, spoke in support of the entire Chapel Hill-Carrboro schools budget request. Susan Johnston read a letter from Nancy Salmon requesting an increase for capital spending for the Chapel Hill-Carrboro School System. A first step in that direction would be to abandon the policy of providing equal amounts of recurring capital to both school systems and institute a new policy of funding on an "as needed" basis. The current policy does not take into account that the needs of the two school systems are not identical. She also requested that the County Attorney research ways to use the district tax for capital spending. This is currently not an option. The impact fee is a good first step toward capital funding, however, it is not enough. She suggested pursuing the authority for a real estate transfer tax to meet the long-range capital needs of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro system. Ken Touw, Chair of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro School Board, thanked John Link for his continued support for excellence in schools. He mentioned that the current budget request was an attempt to extend the impact of opening two new schools over a two year period. He mentioned that the municipalities, not the school boards, support the D.A.R.E. Program. He requested full funding for the schools. Debbie Walhen spoke in support of funding the entire school budget request. She thanked the Board of Commissioners for raising the Impact Fee for the Chapel Hill-Carrboro School System. She asked that sliding scale impact fees, building design and construction standards, intergovernmental cooperation and the exploration of other sources of funding for schools continue to be pursued. The Chapel Hill-Carrboro School System is the fastest growing in the state and it is imperative that needed schools be built in a timely manner. She also spoke in support of more compensation for teachers and administrators. William Hutchins, President of the Public Information Network, spoke in support of funding this non-profit corporation. The Network is a computerized public information system which is developmentally on-line at the University. The system provides information on organizations which are supported with tax dollars. The funds that are currently being requested will be used to bring the Chapel Hill Public Library on-line. This network makes available, among many other items, information such as agendas and minutes from public meetings. Other examples of public information which could be provided are real estate for sale, places to eat, and musical instruments for sale. Barbara Dewey, Vice-President for Programs with the Chapel Hill- Carrboro Association of Educators and the librarian of Frank Porter Graham Elementary School commended John Link for this proposed budget. She asked that the school systems budget request be funded in its entirety and recommended that it be accomplished by increasing the suggested tax assessment from 1 cent to 1.5 cents. The need for additional schools exists now. Bob Kepner, a math teacher at Chapel Hill High School, requested that the school budget request be fully funded. In particular he felt that the differentiated pay for teachers and pay-for-performance for administrators needs to be returned to the budget. Allen Belch spoke in opposition to the full funding of the school budget request. He stated that the School Board and administration have not been responsive to the needs of the citizens. He mentioned that according to his figures, in 1994-1995 the Chapel Hill-Carrboro system received an additional 4.5 million dollars over the 1993-1994 school year. He questioned where that money was being spent. He asked that the schools be required to live within the parameters set for other county services. The increase in the school budget operating costs must be held to no more than a 20 increase. Peter Morcombe stated that he supports high quality education, however, how that occurs is of great concern to him. He requested that zero-based budgeting be implemented.. He mentioned that the private schools are more fiscally responsible and the Board of County Commissioners must require the public schools to follow the example being set by private schools. John Reinhard, a parent of three children, spoke in support of quality education. He asked that the Board of Commissioners hold the line on the school budget and ensure that the schools make the best use of all funds they receive. He asked that schools be built which are within the financial means of the community, that certified teachers working as administrators be required to participate in classroom activities, and that experimental teaching fads be discarded. Bill Elstran stated that he believes that the school system is not spending funds wisely. He asked that the Board of Commissioners require a greater level of accountability. Also, the classroom teachers need to be receiving a greater percentage of the overall budget than they currently receive. Clifton Metcalf, a representative of the Chapel Hill Library Board of Trustees, thanked the Board of Commissioners for their continued support. He also requested additional funding. The library is experiencing tremendous growth at the present time. Circulation is up 44.50, patron visits are up 42.40 with over 330 of the collection in circulation at all times. The library cannot meet the communities expectations with the present budget. The Chapel Hill Town Council has responded positively to the request for financial assistance, however, they cannot shoulder the full burden. A report on use and financial challenges is in the Clerk's office in the permanent agenda file. Commissioner Willhoit asked for clarification on the possibility of instituting user fees for patrons who live outside the Town and/or the County. Mr. Metcalf replied that there are very few out-of-county users (400-500 total) and they are charged $30.00 per year. However, out- of-town patrons who reside within the County may not be charged a fee due to State regulations. John Link stated that the County and municipalities could charge fees; however, State funding is lost when local fees are charged. Margaret Crandall, a representative of the Planned Parenthood of Orange and Durham Counties, requested an increase in the funding provided for this organization from $12,000 to $15,000. She mentioned that Planned Parenthood works diligently to educate citizens on family planning issues as well as sexually transmitted disease, pregnancy, self-esteem and life planning. Marie Riggins spoke in support of funding for the afterschool programs. Frank Camp, the site director at Culbreth Middle School, spoke in support of the After-School Middle School Program. He mentioned that over one-half of the participants are at risk of academic failure. One of the requirements for participation in this program is doing one hour of supervised homework daily. This program provides time to build relationships with teachers which decreases discipline problems and improves grades. Gloria Faley, Chairperson of the Seawell School Governance Committee, spoke in support of full funding of the schools budget request. She especially supported the pay for performance for Principals and Assistant Principals, differentiated pay for lead teachers, funding for the Pannisi Report and full funding for the new school start-up costs. Chris Harlos, a representative of the Friends of the Carrboro Library, spoke in support of additional funding for this library which is currently providing after school and after work activities for Carrboro citizens. Harvey Goldstein, a parent of two children attending the Frank Porter Graham School and immediate past President of the PTA Council, spoke in support of full funding of the school's budget request. He spoke in support of the increase in the impact fee. He believes that the technology specialist positions need to be fully funded as do the suggestions of the Blue Ribbon Task Force. These items, along with additional funding of start-up costs for the new schools, could be accomplished by increasing the district tax by an additional 1/2 cent. Commissioner Willhoit asked what rationale was being used for the argument to use the district tax for start-up costs for Chapel Hill- Carrboro and using the General Fund for the Orange County schools? Harvey Goldstein stated that the s Carrboro should be paid by residents of same should be true for Orange County. Hill-Carrboro school system are willing County system so long as there continue Chapel Hill-Carrboro System. tartup costs for Chapel Hill- that school system and the The residents of the Chapel to help subsidize the Orange to be improvements in the Katherine Browne requested that taxes not be raised further to support the schools. She suggested that the County offer to subsidize local students attending private schools which would alleviate the overcrowding in the schools. Robin McWilliam, a member of the FPG School Governance Committee, spoke in support of fully funding the schools request. He requested that the entire 2 cent increase in the district tax be approved. He mentioned that the students with special needs must be considered in the funding decision. These students are expensive to educate and we must not be let down. Jim Goldstein requested that the Board of Commissioners hold the School Boards accountable for their budget requests. He suggested that the County budget include organizational charts. Also, he asked if the System Analyst position that the manager is recommending for the position transferred from the Tax Assessor's office is really necessary. He asked that the Efficiency Study Committee document their report. Louise Cole, a mother of 6 children, asked that the County not rubber stamp the school's budget request. She indicated that each of her children earned lower S.A.T. scores than the previous sibling in spite of receiving excellent grades in school. One suggestion for improved accountability is zero-based budgeting. She also mentioned that the Arron Harris Elementary School in Durham implemented a program in January of 1994 which increased their end-of-year test scores to the best in their district. A report on this program, in its entirety, is in the permanent agenda file in the Clerk's office. Alice Ammerman, a parent representative on the Student Goverance Committee of Glenwood Elementary, reported that the SGC unanimously supports full funding of the School Board's budget recommendation. She stated that she is dismayed at the need for parents and students to hold sales of various items to support needed programs. A.C. Cantrell, Chair of the Carrboro Student Goverance Committee, spoke in support of full funding of the School Board's budget request. She stated that the quality of education in the area of Arts has greatly suffered in recent years. She also mentioned that there are already many administrators in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro System who are teaching in the classroom.. The most effective solution to the problems being faced by the educational system would be robust business development. Orange County's business is education and in her experience as a Planning Board member there seems to be a antipathy toward the business community. Business requires a degree of predictability which is not offered in Orange County. She suggested that for the long-term solution, the County consider a more attractive environment for business. The short-term solution is to continue to fund education with property tax revenue. Livy Ludington spoke in support of full funding for the schools. Shelly Worman, the Public Services Librarian for the Carrboro Public Library, spoke in support of the Library's funding request. This library is offering a wonderful service to all local citizens, particular those in Carrboro. Many handicapped citizens and mothers of young children are enjoying easier access to the world through books. She displayed what $100 dollars worth of books looked like and asked for help in filling the shelves. Matt Barton requested that the Chapel Hill-Carrboro School budget request be fully funded. Delores Paylor requested that the pay-for-performance for administrators and the differentiated pay for teachers be fully funded. There being no further comment, the meeting was adjourned. The next meeting of the Board of Commissioners will be a budget work session held on Monday, June 12, 1995. Moses Carey, Jr., Chair xatny waxer, lleputy ~lerx