FARMINGTON — Franklin County commissioners voted 2-1 Tuesday to accept the Budget Advisory Committee’s $5.51 million spending plan for 2013-14. The budget, which includes $1.6 million for the jail, is $218,350 more than the current one.
The budget panel’s proposal is $14,866 more than the commissioners’ recommendation.
Commissioner Fred Hardy of New Sharon opposed the vote.
Commissioner Gary McGrane of Jay made the motion to accept the committee’s budget, which was seconded by Chairman Clyde Barker of Strong.
“I just don’t agree with some of these things,” Hardy said of the budget panel’s decisions.
He said he wanted to make sure full-time employee Deputy Clerk/Deputy Treasurer Vickie Braley received her flex benefits. The Budget Committee flat-funded the flex benefits in the commissioners’ budget, keeping them at the current budget amount of $24,600. The move removed $1,410 from the account.
The budget committee voted last year to cut the part-time elected officials’ flex benefits in half.
The committee had debated removing the 2 percent in the commissioners budget slated for raises but then the discussion moved to flex benefits, county Clerk Julie Magoon said. The 2 percent for raises remained in the account.
All three commissioners said Tuesday that they were willing to reduce their flex benefits to make sure the full-time employee got hers.
Budget committee member Ryan Morgan of Farmington said the motion he made was to reduce an amount of money out of the budget and left it up to commissioners to do what they wanted with it.
Hardy said he had a problem with some of the decisions in program grants.
He moved to change the amount for adult education back to the commissioners’ recommendation of $22,557. The budget panel had reduced it to $17,425.
Commissioners voted 1-2 with McGrane and Barker opposed.
McGrane said he didn’t like the reduction either but still wanted to uphold the committee’s work.
“I still want to go with the budget committee’s recommendation after hearing all of the comments and all of the discussion,” McGrane said. “I think in total the budget committee has done a wonderful job.”
Hardy also tried to decrease Tri-County Mental Health’s amount from $20,000 approved by the budget panel to $10,000, which commissioners had recommended.
The vote was 2-1 with McGrane opposed. In order for a budget item to go back to the budget committee it has to be done by a unanimous vote of commissioners. The amount remained at $20,000.
Hardy also tried to reinstate $750 for the Threshold of Maine and fully fund the Greater Franklin County Development Corp. at $60,000. Both his motions died for lack of seconds.
McGrane told Morgan, the only member of the budget committee, that he appreciated all the hard work the budget panel did and for making some changes to the process.
Look for better changes next year, Morgan said. There was some discussion by the panel following its vote in May about the process, he said.
Currently the committee holds a public hearing but does not show what its intent is to recommend for each account. They then hold a second meeting at which they make decisions.
dperry@sunjournal.com
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