York Supervisors Get Look at Another Tight Budget

By Kimberly Lenz Wednesday, February 16, 2011

York County supervisors took their first look at a budget for the next fiscal year, and it promises another year of doing more with less.

County Administrator James McReynolds, wearing the finance director hat since the abrupt resignation of Marycarol White in September, told the board at their Tuesday meeting the $123 million budget represents no change to the tax rate and a 5 percent decrease in spending since 2009. The budget is available online in its entirety by clicking here. Also at that link is an explanatory budget process video delivered by McReynolds.

With the proposed budget, county employees can expect a couple of things: no raises, for the fourth year in a row, and health care contributions that would rise by nine percent.

A hiring freeze would remain in place, McReynolds said, with 17 full-time equivalent positions open, including the finance director’s spot. In a budget briefing to the media earlier Tuesday, McReynolds said a planned retirement in the General Services department would likely mean a senior level position would remain open.

“Our employees are our greatest asset and treating them fairly is a concern,” McReynolds said during the media briefing. “At the same time we have to face the fiscal reality and live within our means.”

Education and public safety remain the county’s top priorities – and top expenses – McReynolds said.

Education and library services account for 45 percent of county expenditures; public safety, including fire and police services, accounts for 23 percent.

This year, York schools can expect to receive $337,000 less from the county in the budget year that begins July 1. Capital improvement requests, however, would be fully funded. York School Board members came to the supervisors last week for a joint meeting in which they asked for level funding; even with it, Superintendent Eric Williams said, his proposed budget would likely reflect staff reductions totaling $661,000 (15 full-time equivalent positions) and no pay increases for the third consecutive year.

McReynolds said the county’s revenues will be down by $2.5 million, with the closing of Western Oil Refinery accounting for $2 million of that loss annually for the next two fiscal years. The balance of the shortfall is expected due to lower assessments on real estate throughout the county.

The picture improves, he said, with steady construction picking up a bit.

Under the proposed budget contributions to nonprofits will go down by 50 percent, McReynolds said. Exceptions would be for those nonprofits, such as Child Development Resources, with whom the county has a contractual obligation to provide services.

Three representatives from Colonial Court-Appointed Special Advocates, a mostly volunteer organization that stands for children whose circumstances put them in Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court and received the least - $250 – from York County in the last budget, made a plea to maintain their funding in the next budget. The director, a volunteer and an attorney who serves as a guardian ad litem for children all spoke passionately about the need to keep funding the program, which served 40 county children last year.

The proposed York County contribution to Colonial CASA next year: $125.

Supervisors appeared resigned to tough discussions in the coming weeks, and urged citizens to express their thoughts during that process.

District 5 Supervisor Tom Shepperd said the evening’s earlier presentation on a community satisfaction survey that showed county residents’ ranking of quality of life as very important, but suggested the best indication of how little decisions can have big impact is last year’s budget-cutting move to reduce curbside recycling service to every other week. The change, which would have saved the county $100,000, lasted less than a month before resident complaints put plans in motion to reinstate the once-a-week pickup.

“The bottom line on our budget is you can talk numbers till you are blue in the face but it’s the effect on people’s lives and the services,” Shepperd said. “We cannot lose sight of the fact that we have an economic environment that takes into account our tax rate. We can expect some really tough, unpopular decisions. It’s going to be very important for citizens to make their opinions known.”