County budget group to meet Thurs.

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YEARWOOD

County budget group to meet Thurs.

Posted by

Mike Buffington

in Top Stories & Breaking News, Winder Archives

Wednesday, May 27. 2009

Comments (11)

The Barrow County Board of Commissioners budget committee will meet Thursday at 4 p.m. to again wrestle with what portends to be the most difficult budget year in the county’s history.

County BOC chairman Danny Yearwood said this week that climbing out of what amounts to a nearly $10 million revenue hole over the next 16 months will require a combination of departmental restructuring, layoffs, salary and benefit reductions and higher taxes.

“We are going to face this thing,” he said in an interview.

Last week, he began preparing the county’s elected officials and department managers for what may be required. At a May 21 meeting to kickoff the FY2010 budget process, he reeled off numbers showing the severity of the projected shortfall and the lack of a simple fix.

With characteristically blunt language, Yearwood said the county is broke; that at the current pace of revenues and expenditures, it may not be able to pay its employees by the end of this calendar year; and that the situation in the fiscal year 2010 will be even worse.

He said he didn’t have the answer, asked for the officials’ input, and then put all of them on notice that they, too, would shoulder the responsibility – and the political risk – with him for how the budget crisis is handled.

Retired senior judge Bob Adamson spoke first and most extensively at last week’s meeting. First, he said, the county must determine which services are essential and staff those.

Second, the county should correct any salaries that may be too high due to the aggressive implementation of a 2005 pay study.

Third, the county should try marketing two vacant tracts it purchased a few years ago for future development, but will cost an extra $1 million in annual debt service starting this October and $2 million the next year.

For this story and related finanical issues, see the May 27 issue of the Barrow Journal.

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#1 Wise Blood on 05/27/09 at 11:39 AM [Reply]

Adamson — Who cares what he says? If Yearwood and his collection of incompetent clowns raise taxes 1 red cent, they should be recalled immediately. (And they will be.)

#1.1 Confused. on 05/28/09 at 11:36 AM [Reply]

So lets see... We have a huge debt, not inccured by all of the present Admin. Our reserves are below the required amount. Vacated jobs have been left open. Employees already have given a percentage of their pay. Now you are saying if a tax increase is placed, everyone should be kicked out? Compare taxes here to that of Jackson County. Our taxes here have not been increased in several years, perhaps another nail that has been driven into our coffin. The question is, do you want the services you have now, or give up something? If so, which do you give up? You may have never had to request any service from the County, however, if by chance you do, at that time, I am sure it will be of the upmost importance.

#2 anonymous on 05/27/09 at 12:35 PM [Reply]

Thanks to Doug and the Yes men that got us to this place. Never heard one of them say NO or SLOW DOWN on any of this "build it they will come" strategy. Thank goodness they did not have enough time to build a Convention Center (in a town with few hotels and places to eat) and who knows what else.

#3 Anonymous on 05/27/09 at 05:02 PM [Reply]

I sympathize with those who have to balance the budget for this county but I will not support those who attempt to do so by raising taxes. I already pay enough in taxes.

It's time, gentlemen, to stop the sideshows and do your jobs.

#4 GaDawg on 05/27/09 at 11:03 PM [Reply]

Taxes do not need to be raised. That will only place a higher burden on the common Barrow county citizen who is already facing desperate times.

Governments need to realize that when they face shortfalls in revenues, they must cut their spending. In doing so, they must cut non-essential services.

Police and Fire services are deemed essential and should never be trimmed in the face of budget troubles. Instead, they must always be sized directly proportional to the population needs. Good infrastructure is also key to the growth and success of industries.

#4.1 watching and waiting on 06/02/09 at 03:24 PM [Reply]

I agree that the Police, Sheriff, EMS and Fire Depts. should not be cut. It is my understanding that each department is presently operating understaffed and as a citizen of Barrow County we can't afford to lose any more people from these departments. If the criminals learn that we are operating with a smaller force, we will see more crimes being committed. I also would not like for my home to be on fire or my child needing an ambulance and the wait time become longer. I just ask that if these departments are going to suffer cuts we stand together as citizens of Barrow County and protest this because I believe this will hurt us in the end.

#5 Anonymous on 05/28/09 at 10:51 AM [Reply]

Raising taxes will create more foreclosures. Everyone is hurting by this economy & cannot afford anymore taxes. Board of Commissioners, get tough and cut the spending. There is not any other choice.

#6 Joe Mugg on 05/28/09 at 01:49 PM [Reply]

Okay you all say don't raise my taxes but you offer no solutions. Maybe you should quit being part of the problem and saying don't raise my taxes and start being part of the solution and suggesting ways to correct this problem without raising taxes or cutting services.

#6.1 Joe Martinaud on 05/30/09 at 12:24 PM [Reply]

1. Collect ALL PAST DUE taxes. Become DILIGENT in collecting taxes. Don't let the "in" group get two, three and yes in some cases four years past due.

2. Quit spending so much money on the county attorney. It seems the BOC has to "retire" to the back room for "litigation" almost every board meeting. If the county is being sued - SETTLE - stop wasting money. From what I've been reading in the papers, the courts haven't been ruling in favor of the cities and counties lately.

3. Become PROACTIVE in recruiting business's to Barrow County. Work with the existing business's (small, privately owned as well as large) to increase business. Encourage not discourage (Scatt's (city)) businesses.
News Flash -- Businesses bring in TAX DOLLARS

4. Begin a campaign to clean up the image of Barrow County. This will attract businesses as well as people with disposable income.
News Flash -- People with disposable income - SPEND IT, and hopefully in the county in which they live.

#7 Anonymous on 05/30/09 at 10:48 AM [Reply]

It is obvious that certain employees are going to be allowed to do whatever they want to and that is costing the county $$$$$$$. There have been some "very postive solutions" posted, regarding employees that need to be fired, but nothing has been done.
This waste of money needs to be taken back. It is not fair that the people who are "supporting" the county should continue to victimized, while "certain county employees" are being rewarded for their fraudent actions.
I hope this will be posted, because the last one I submitted was not posted. Thank you,

#8 Anonymous on 06/02/09 at 12:10 PM [Reply]

Raising taxes is absolutely NOT the answer! There are too many areas of wasteful spending in the county budget. Spending wisely is the solution, not taxing more.

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