By Mary Drier
(Contact / Staff Bio)
October 24, 2009 - 08:50 a.m. EST
TUSCOLA COUNTY — The buck is passed when shirking responsibility, and state lawmakers are doing that to balance their budget by passing responsibility for services to counties, but without any bucks to fund them.
In one way or another, budget cuts in Lansing financially impact county operations. And there could be even more bad financial news because some state budget areas are not completed yet as lawmakers work to cover their $2.8 billion deficit.
For the last few months, Tuscola County Commissioners have been reviewing, revising and making budget adjustments and projections in reaction to state budget cuts or proposed cuts.
District Judge Kim Glaspie told commissioners to stop waiting for what the state is going to do, draft a budget taking into consideration everything the state could cut to the county, and do what is needed to keep county employees working and offices operating.
“Set the budget on the worse case scenario... And, how can you justify funding non-mandated services while cutting county employees, and picking and choosing what non-mandated to keep?” Glaspie questioned. “Eliminate them all.”
The county is projecting about a $960,000 budget shortfall between all of the state funding cuts, low interest earnings, lower property taxes and falling revenues from other sources, according to Commissioner Tom Bardwell, who chairs the county’s finance committee.
Some of the non-mandated services suggested to be cut are: Courthouse security at $146,842, Friend of the Court security at $23,978, Michigan State University Extension at $134,431, Planning Commission at $11,550, Thumb Narcotics Unit (TNU), emergency services at $75,744, veteran services at $72,744, Economic Development Commission at $53,000, parks at $5,000, animal control, community corrections at $9,200, remonumentation at $4,000, and marine safety.
Commissioner Tom Kern noted there would be an uproar from “cutting the parks when she’s not here.”
Kern was referring to Commissioner Amanda Roggenbuck, who has strongly pushed development of the only county-owned park, Vanderbilt Park and Campground, which is in her district.
Totally cutting all non-mandated services would save approximately $440,000, but still leaves a deficit of about $520,000, noted Bardwell.
“That’s about half of your deficit,” said Glaspie.
Even though animal control, TNU and marine services are non-mandated, they are looking at being kept because they aren’t a cost to the county, or cost very little.
A deal was made with Sanilac County’s Animal Control to operate animal control without cost to the county. And, the marine safety program and TNU are primarily funded with grants.
Plus, cutting some non-mandates has to be studied because some revenue could be lost or such an action could cause other problems.
If the $9,200 budgeted for community corrections is cut, there would be a loss of revenue that’s generated by jail inmates doing community services work, and could create additional jail overcrowding problems because each day worked, according to sheriff Lee Teschendorf.
To balance its budget, the state is looking at amputating funds to municipalities like revenue sharing, which is one of the county’s top revenue sources, the Hotel and Liquor Tax, health and child services, veterans, and Payment In Lieu of Taxes (PILT), which is property tax on state land.
“The governor also stopped the diverted felon program, so that’s a loss of about $60,000,” said Teschendorf.
Plus, property values and homes’ selling prices are at an all-time low.
“Right now, it looks like property taxes will be about 3.8 percent lower than last year,” said Equalization Director Walt Schlichting. “That’s about $218,000 less money for the general operating fund.
“This is the first time in decades home values have fallen like this.”
So far, agriculture land values have remained steady.
“There just isn’t enough money,” said Bardwell.
At this point, cutting all non-mandated services is only being considered. It has not been finalized, and will be discussed at next county meeting 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Gilford Township Hall.
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October 26, 2009
11:47 p.m.Report inappropriate content
The orical of Omaha says you can't tell who is swimming naked until the tide goes out. Well the tide is going out and Tuscola officials look pretty bad.
October 27, 2009
3:27 a.m.Report inappropriate content
Since Hoagland has the highest paid non-mandated position let's start the cutting there.
October 27, 2009
12:37 p.m.Report inappropriate content
So, since property values are going down. When will I hear from the tax assessor as to how much and when my property taxes will be going down?
October 27, 2009
1:13 p.m.Report inappropriate content
Vito,
Three (3) of those commissioners gave Hoagland and the corporate counsel 3 year contracts last year, so these 2 get paid for 2 more years. Another example of mismanagement when they knew this was possible and Bardwell even said he had concerns about the contracts.
October 27, 2009
1:56 p.m.Report inappropriate content
Patrick,
Keep watching as they raise your taxes to pay for a veterans program (which is a debt we owe to the vets), while we continue to pay $50,000 for a corporate counsel and $90,000 for a county administrator. They are also eliminating all three programs to bring more jobs into the county. Why would you think the rest of the county is any better managed than the mosquito abatement program?
October 28, 2009
1:01 a.m.Report inappropriate content
First let me say, Warren I absolutely LOVE reading your posts!! Always spot on and right to the point. Second, I don't know much about the programs and positions being cut. One that I do know a little bit about and hold very dear to my heart is the MSU extension office. It wasn't until I sat down and really thought about that I realized just how much I have utilized this program. I participated in Building Strong Families with my daughter. As a new single mom this service provided me with a ton of information, resources and moral support that I still use. Now that my child is older she participates in a local 4-H group. The extension helps train leaders and raise all around better kids. Finally when I needed information about rainfall amounts earlier this spring, the extension had the info. That's just a few instances that I have utilized the program, even as I sit here typing I can think of more and more but this post is getting a bit wordy so I will close by just asking that the commissioners try something new and think about the results of their actions BEFORE they act.
October 28, 2009
1:46 p.m.Report inappropriate content
I think society a bit corrupt to hope for fixing these money problems. This is just the start of budget reductions. A price that we pay for a twenty year economic experiment that failed. It will be awhile before things really start to improve so we might as well get used to being poor.
The Federal Reserve has about a trillion pumped into the credit markets that was needed to restart them after they collapsed last year. At some point that money will need to come out. Interest rates can't stay at zero because there really is no such thing as free money!
Many people are living on unemployment. At some point that unemployment will run out. A huge overhang of unemployed workers waiting to drop. Parents be ready for adult children and grandchildren to move in. LOL!... we wanted a family centered community?
Electric cars are nice but few people have any money to buy one. We can not at this time reasonably expect the auto industry to return. The "prison industry" failed as it is difficult to create an economy by locking people up. Wind mills (green shoots) are cool but hardly create enough jobs.
We are pretty much left with farming. Which is better then places like Detroit have it. Sugar beets a really a poor crop because cane makes cheaper sugar. Hard to continue when the guys in the south have a cheaper way to make sugar. My general point here is that the MSU Extension is a poor item to cut.... if you look forward just a few months. We need a farming revolution with new crops that provide jobs for residents. Such jobs will probably be low paying but better then no jobs and they generate some tax revenue.
Rather then look to taxing existing revenue streams government needs to look at job/economic creation. Short term lots of heads going to roll both inside and outside our government. Long term we will probably have to live as a poorer society. Like it or not the revolution is here.