Beech Tree News Network

The Butler County Fiscal Court met in special session on Monday night, March 21st. All Fiscal Court members were present, along with some visitors, and several members of the news media. Awaiting the magistrates were four items of business on the agenda.

The first agenda item was continued work on the County's criteria for adding roads into the county road system.

Leading the work on the road criteria have been County Attorney Dick Deye--handling legal aspects of the criteria, and Third District Magistrate Chad Tyree--responsible for construction/physical criteria for road inclusion. Tyree is a trained engineer, but does not hold his Professional Engineer certification as previously reported on BeechtreeNews.com.

Deye reported that he is finalizing the legal aspects of the criteria, and that the legal criteria will need to be merged with construction criteria. He also said he needed to include procedures for taking roads out of the county system. Tyree told the Court he has basically "cleaned up" Ordinance 2007-04-01 which sets county road requirements.

Tyree made it clear that future road additions will be maintained at the level are which they are added. Said Tyree, "We will maintain it as it's taken on."

Tyree also stressed that section 6.1 of the existing ordinance needed to be cleaned up and clarified. He cited passages in the ordinance that had been left blank.

First District Magistrate Stevie Givens asked if consideration of two roads--Eric Young Road and Hidden Valley Road--would be done under the old or new criteria. County Judge-Executive David Fields told him that consideration of adding the two roads would be done under the new criteria.

Fields also told the Court that a priority of the new criteria would be making it clear to land owners the procedures and requirements for adding roads to the county system.

County Attorney Deye told the Court that he doesn't as yet have the new ordinance in writing, and that it would be up to the Squires whether or not to amend the existing ordinance, or pass a new one.

Fourth District Magistrate David Whittinghill moved to give Deye the authority to merge legal and construction criteria into one ordinance, with Fifth District Magistrate Bobby Moore providing the second. The Court voted 5-0 to pass the motion.

Funding of 911 dispatch was the next item on the agenda.

The continued reduction in the number of landline phones has led to a significant shortfall in funding for 911 dispatch services. In recent months funding options for 911 dispatch has been an ongoing saga for the Fiscal Court. While statewide measures, such as House Bill 585, are in the works to alleviate some of the shortfall, measures are needed to fund the system at a local level.

Discussion of the funding opened with a question from Magistrate David Whittinghill. Whittinghill asked, members of the Ambulance Board why one dispatcher makes $44,000.00 per year. Board member Don Sullivan answered that the employee in question has worked for dispatch for over twenty years, and works overtime hours. Further questioning revealed that the overtime is available because the part-time dispatcher also works for Ohio County Dispatch and isn't always available to cover open shifts.

Whittinghill then asked the Board members if there was any way they could cut dispatch expenses. He received no answer. He then asked if the board had any other funding ideas other than raising landline phone fees as had been proposed at a previous meeting. Again Whittinghill's question went unanswered.

Magistrate Tyree proposed adding $25 fire dues to county tax bills. Magistrate Givens told the Court that some counties have chosen to add the fire dues to water bills in order to collect the fee from the maximum number of tax-payers.

Visitor Carlos Raymer objected to the idea of enacting another tax on local citizens. Raymer told the Court that people can't afford another tax saying, "We cannot just go ahead and up taxes and up taxes and up taxes."

Raymer proposed that an independent service could be brought in that would operate more efficiently.

Board member Patrick Daugherty countered Raymer. He told the Court that when he looks at 911 dispatch he can't see where cuts can be made. He further stated that he is "desperately" looking for ways to cut spending. Daugherty also stated that competent people make decent salaries. He closed his remarks asking, "Do we want 911 or not?"

Another board member, Debbie Rose Worley, explained to the Court that 911 dispatch is its own entity, and not a part of the ambulance service. She stated that the ambulance service is fiscally sound but 911 dispatch is, "dragging it down."

Magistrate Whittinghill returned the discussion to the proposal to add fire dues to tax bills. He said the plan proposed was similar to one currently in place in neighboring Edmonson County.

County Attorney Dick Deye interrupted the discussion with concerns that the discussion of fire dues violated the agenda for the special session. Kentucky law precludes discussion of any business not specifically listed on the agenda for a special session. Discussion of mandatory fire dues and 911 dispatch funding ended at that point with no action taken.

Following the meeting Fourth District Magistrate David Whittinghill clarified how the mandatory fire dues would work. He said that a fee of $25 would be added to tax bills, with a maximum of 2 fees charged per district.

In the final two agenda items of the evening the Court reviewed the 2015-16 budget, and spoke briefly about the budget for 2016-17.

Judge Fields and County Treasurer Susan Johnson reported that all expenditures and receipts aren't in yet for fiscal year 2015-16, but the budget appears to be on track to finish with a slight surplus. Fields said the total remaining in the surplus budget fund was just shy of $400,000, which is down significantly.

No action was taken and the meeting was adjourned.

Story by Joe K. Morris, Beech Tree News