HomeMy WebLinkAbout1998-11-06-TB TOWN OF ULYSSES
BUDGET WORK SESSION
NOVEMBER 6m, 1998
PRESENT: Supervisor Douglas Austic; Councilpeople Carolyn Duddleston, Peter
Penniman and Robert Weatherby; absent Councilman Andrew Hillman ; Town
Clerk Marsha L . Georgia ; Highway Superintendent James Meeker.
Others Present : David Linn , David Reynolds, Roger Calkins, Jennifer Swartwood .
Supervisor Austic called the meeting to order at 3 : 30 PM . The purpose of this
work session is to discuss the preliminary budget and the amount fixed for
personal services with the employees . The increased for this in the preliminary
budget is at 2% .
The Board explained the reasoning behind the setting of this at a 2% increase
and that being that an increase will occur in the health insurance rates . With the
two they figured it to be about a 3 . 5% increase overall .
Highway Superintendent James Meeker asked the Board to keep in mind that his
men and himself represents over 89 years of service to the Town . Mr. Linn
having over twenty-five years, Mr. Calkins over twenty, Mr. Reynolds over ten,
Mr. Durling over fourteen and himself at over twenty . He feels the hourly rate
that these guys are working for is not all the high for this many years of
dedicated service .
The employees had contacted the other Townships in the County and requested
information on their budgets . All Towns were giving a 3% increase except one
was at 2 . 5% . Five out of the nine towns also pay full health insurance .
After discussions the Board unanimously approved to put the personal services to
3% increase . Originally they were at 3 . 5% in the tentative budget .
Mrs . Duddleston reviewed the information she had gathered on salaries for
bookkeepers and supervisors in the other towns . Mr. Austic abstained from this
discussion and left the room . It was decided to decrease the salary of
Supervisor to $6000 and re-instate the line for Bookkeeper and set that salary at
$ 13,776 . The Board will appoint Mr. Austic as Bookkeeper .
Mr. Austic returned and explained that the Town had won the unemployment
case and unemployment has been denied to that individual . Therefore he feels
that putting the $3000 in the unemployment reserve for 1999 may be high .
They decided to decrease that by $2700 and only allocate $300 .
They other item is A1620 . 02 was not transferred over when the budget went
from tentative too preliminary .
Supervisor Austic feels that the above changes can be made and use some fund
balances and still stay without a tax rate increase .
Hearing no further discussions the work session was closed .