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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2006-09-05-10:00AM-PUBLIC HEARINGFILED 2006 SEP - I A 9. 13 BRAZOS COUNTV,~. (,wTYCLERK f .,t M1Y BRYAN, TEXAS BRYAN,TEXAS BY:4 r%rpe4 DEPUTY NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING ON THE PROPOSED BRAZOS COUNTY BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR ENDING 30 SEPTEMBER 2007 5 SEPTEMBER 2006 THE BRAZOS COUNTY COMMISSIONERS COURT WILL CONDUCT A PUBLIC HEARING ON TUESDAY 5 SEPTEMBER 2006 AT 10:00 A.M. IN THE COMMISSIONERS COURTROOM OF THE BRAZOS COUNTY COURTHOUSE, 300 EAST 26TH STREET, SUITE 115, BRYAN, TEXAS. THE COURT WILL HEAR COMMENTS ON THE PROPOSED BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR ENDING 30 SEPTEMBER 2007. ALL INTERESTED PERSONS ARE INVITED TO ATTEND SAID HEARING AND PRESENT THEIR CAUSE, IF ANY, FOR OR AGAINST THE PROPOSED BUDGET. THE PROPOSED BUDGET IS FILED WITH THE COUNTY CLERK AND WILL REMAIN ON FILE IN THE OFFICE OF THE COUNTY CLERK IN ACCORDANCE WITH EXISTING STATE STATUTES. ALL INTERESTED PARTIES ARE URGED TO ACQUAINT THEMSELVES WITH SAID BUDGET DURING THE TIME IT REMAINS ON FILE WITH THE COUNTY CLERK. The Brazos County Courthouse is wheelchair accessible. Handicap parking spaces are available. Any request for sign interpretive services must be made two business days before the meeting. To make arrangements, call (979) 361-4102. Office of the County Judge • 300 East 2dh St. • Suite 114 • Bryan, Texas 77803 • Fax: (979) 361-4503 COMMISSIONERS' COURT PUBLIC HEARING September 5, 2006 The Commissioners' Court of Brazos County, Texas met in a Public Hearing in the Commissioners' Courtroom in the Courthouse in Bryan, Brazos County, Texas, beginning at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday September 5, 2006, with the following members of the Court present: Randy Sims, County Judge, Presiding; Lloyd Wassermann, Commissioner of Precinct 1; Duane Peters, Commissioner of Precinct 2; Kenny Mallard, Commissioner of Precinct 3; Carey Cauley, Commissioner of Precinct 4: Karen McQueen, County Clerk. Attached is a list of the citizens and officials in attendance. Attached is a transcript of the meeting. Vol gc!~ Page 179 BRAZOS COUNTY COMMISSIONERS COURT Proposed Budget for Fiscal Year Ending September 2007 September 5th. 2006 Tape begins mid-sentence. Sims: ...for coming to our public hearing. Notice of public hearing on the proposed budget for fiscal year ending 30th of September 2007 is being held on Tuesday, the 5`h of September, 2006 at 10:00 p.m. in the Commissioner's Court Room of the Brazos County Courthouse. The court will hear comments on the proposed budget for fiscal ending 30`h September, 2007. All interested persons are invited to attend said hearing and present their cause, if any, for or against the proposed budget. The Proposed budget is filed with the County Clerk and will remain on file in the Office of the county Clerk in accordance with existing State statutes. All interested parties are urged to acquaint themselves with said budget during the time it remains on file with the County Clerk. If someone would like to speak, we would like to have your name and address for the record so we can get it on our records. So, we will open this public hearing. Yes sir? Basdekas: Well for what to...not to make recently the size of the facility so, my comments regarding... Sims: Name and address. Basdekas: I'm sorry. I apologize. Demetrius Basdekas, 7191 Old Reliance Road, Bryan, 77808. I don't have a whole lot of comments to make and of course my views are well known regarding some important aspects for the county (inaudible). One on the top of my list is county employee salaries. Accepting 5% as proposed is better than 2% or 3% like the previous years. That's a step in the right direction. 10% would be a lot more reasonable and equitable I think. But let's see how the margin develops as you go. The other thing is that I noticed that Judge, you are proposing to give a substantial raise to the County Commissioners. Although this in the strict sense in the definition of county employee, they are county employees and yes they are employed with the county. But elected officials but if they have a problem with the salaries they are getting they can file a grievance. There are established procedures to do that. Be that as it may, my views on the salaries Vol Page (gb 3 with members of the Commissioner's Court well known. I have expressed them before as (inaudible) as I could. For the Commissioners I propose, suggest that, in the past ...that their salaries should not exceed $25,000.00 per year. I gave the rational then and I'm not sure if I need to give it again. The only exception is that I stated before, a year or two ago, is the salary that goes with the County Judge's office. I feel that should have increased to $110,000.00, $115,000.00 by now. So these are my views on the salary department. Now I have a question or two for you Judge and a question or two for the Commissioner's individually, if I may. And the question I have; what was the rationale that you applied in making this proposal of increasing the Commissioner's salaries? Sims: I will answer that real quick for you. It was a 5% across the board. All employees of Brazos County. Basdekas: So it was just basically you... Sims: A COLA. Basdekas: ...(inaudible) was to be a... Sims: A COLA. Basdekas: fair across the board and that was your reasoning. Sims: That's correct. Basdekas: Ok. Sims: Well, the reasoning was a cost of living had gone up. Basdekas: And that was the intention to... Sims: Yes. Basdekas: ...to (inaudible). Sims: Yes. Basdekas: Ok. Was there any quid pro quo in making that proposal? Vol Page 13I 4 Sims: I'm sorry, I didn't catch that? Basdekas: Was there a (inaudible) other than to be fair to county employees? It's a departure from past practice but a welcome none the less (inaudible), ok? Other than your willingness to be fair to county employees (inaudible) was there any quid pro quo that entered into your decision to propose that? Sims: The cost of living had gone up for everybody. Those people that work for Brazos County, I don't care what department they live in, their cost of living had gone up. Basdekas: Ok. And you felt that the Commissioner's should get the same increase? Sims: All employees of Brazos County, yes sir. Basdekas: Well, Mr. Cauley has something to say... Cauley: No I have a question to ask. Basdekas: Yes sir. Cauley: Did you ever get a raise while you were working? Basdekas: Pardon me? Cauley: Did you ever get a raise while you were working? Basdekas: Yes. I've never been elected to office such as yourself Cauley: Well, while you were working... you had a job? Basdekas: Sure I did. Cauley: Ok. Basdekas: Sure. I don't know of anybody that would not. But in any event... so there was no previous understanding with the Commissioners that they would have to do something in return? Sims: I'm not even going to dignify that with an answer. Basdekas: Vol Well, but just a minute. Maybe there was a question of making a revision to the Expo Center fund. Because that has financial problems and I think the 6 Page I ?A 5 performance or approval of the project knowing the difficulties that the project is facing might be willing to do a little something to help it along. Now if you don't want to dignify that... Mallard: Sir, are you calling me a criminal Mr. Basdekas? Basdekas: Pardon me? Mallard: Are you calling me a criminal Mr. Basdekas? Basdekas: No, I'm not. Mallard: Do you have any evidence of this Mr. Basdekas? Basdekas: I'm asking a question. Mallard: If you do, please go to the District Attorney and submit that to them. I just don't appreciate being called a criminal. Basdekas: I don't know where you getting that. Mallard: You're asking me if I made some agreement to receive an increase in my salary. I consider that a criminal act. Basdekas: Is it criminal? Mallard: I don't know, I consider what you're trying to say sounds like that you're saying I'm committing some sort of criminal act. If I am, please go and submit your evidence to the District Attorney so we can bring this to light and put it wherever we need to put it so it will come to rest and the guilty will be found. Basdekas: I asked a question of the County Judge. And he has responded (inaudible), ok? But you got offended because I asked the Judge a question. Mallard: No, I got offended because I think you're trying to insinuate that I as a Commissioner on this Court am doing an illegal act. And if you are...I say submit this evidence to whomever and get this out in the light. Get it...take it to the press, take it somewhere but quit coming down here and accusing us of doing criminal acts. I don't appreciate that. Basdekas: Well if I had evidence to support what you are alleging that I'm doing, ok? I would not be bashful to do what would be the right thing to do. Vol S Page [9 3 6 Mallard: Ok. Basdekas: I came here asking a question because this is a departure now from practices of trying to get Commissioners lumped up with the rest of the county employees. Your counterparts in the two City Councils or the two cities here the two (inaudible) Bryan and College Station received next to nothing for performing the same services that you perform for the people of Brazos County. And perhaps if you cut down on your attempts to serve the people of Brazos County, maybe the people of Brazos County will be better off to begin with anyway. Sims: Ok. Thank you Mr. Basdekas. Basdekas: Now just a minute Judge. I said I have... Sims: You have one more minute. Basdekas: Well, it's your meeting and you can call the shots... Sims: Thank you. Basdekas: And maybe I'm not informed will be a different story when you don't call the shots. But be that as it may my question to the Commissioners individually, if I may, is; Commissioner Wassermann, do you want to accept the raise? Wassermann: I will tell you sir that I didn't even know that Judge was giving a 5% COLA until he said it in the budget hearings. Basdekas: Ok. Wassermann: I mean, absolutely, I had no knowledge of that, that, that should... Basdekas: Fine. Do you accept it...? Wassermann: You should agree with the fact that I didn't know anything about it... Basdekas: I accept that. Wassermann: Vol 8 q Page 184 7 ...and until he presented that. So that I means I had no knowledge of that part of that. Basdekas: I accept. I take your word Commissioner. My question is, will you accept it? Do you accept the raise? Wassermann: If he deems that it's right and every employee in Brazos County; yes. Basdekas: Commissioner Peters? Peters: Yes. Basdekas: Commissioner Mallard would you accept it? Mallard: Yes. Basdekas: Commissioner Cauley? Cauley: Do you accept all the raises you get? Basdekas: I'm asking you a specific question. Cauley: I'm asking you. How many of your raises that you've received while you've been working or retired that you've turned back? Basdekas: A number. Cauley: Huh? Basdekas: A number and I accepted them all. Cauley: Ok. Yes. Basdekas: My question... Cauley: Yes. Basdekas: You will accept it? Cauley: Yes. Just like you. Basdekas: Just like you. Vol S!~ Page l fl y Cauley: Ok. Basdekas: Thank you. Sims: Thank you. Ok. Anyone else? Yes sir. John, thank you. Your name, address please? Godfrey: John Godfrey, 2810 Broadmore. Judge I'm speaking on behalf of the other two part time bailiffs that serve the six courts here in the courthouse. As you know, their past salaries have ranged from $25.00 down to, I think, $12.50 and I'm asking that, unilaterally, all the courts pay the same pay and I'm recommending $15.00. We are not county employees; we do it on a contract basis. So that $15.00, if you take 20% of that away because we have to pay our Social Security and our taxes that brings it back down to $12.00, really. All three of us have served either the city or the county for 30 years or more. We've handled prisoners all those years, we've served the courts for at least the past six or seven years and we feel that that is a reasonable salary. If we weren't doing it, you'd probably have to rely on the sheriff's department to bring jailers in to work part time. So far, we've been able to serve the courts on almost a minutes notice. A lot of times we don't think we're going to work that day and somebody calls us at 6:00 in the morning saying, "Can you work?" And we'll say, "Yes, we can." So that's my feelings and actually if the county is going to get 5% more. We're only asking for about .50 to .60 more an hour. Sometimes we work two hours and sometimes we work the full day, but we never know exactly. Sims: Ok. We did standardize what the bailiffs were going to get. Or we had in the budget, is that not correct Katie? Conner: Yes, it's $14.50 and hour. Godfrey: So we're asking for.50 an hour more. Sims: Ok. Godfrey: If we work two hours, that's a dollar or two dollars more a day. Sims: Ok. Thank you. Godfrey: Thank you. Sims: Ok. Name, address please? Vol g,? Page 18(0 9 Thompson: Dewayne Thompson, Constable Precinct 3. First of all I'd like to thank the Commissioner's Court for all the work that they've done. I know it's a tough job on the budget every year and I feel like yall really worked extra hard this year. I would like to ask yall to take a close look at the clerks' salaries. We've asked for a raise for them. There's one or two of the clerks right now that are eligible for food stamps and I kind of feel like that's a shame for a job with the county doesn't pay any more than that. So I'd just like to ask you to look at it real close on our clerks' pays. Thank you. Sims: Ok. Yes sir. Judge Smith. Smith: Judge Steve Smith, 361x; I'm not going to speak, I'll leave it in the good hands of the Commissioners regarding our part-time bailiffs but I would just like to let the Commissioners know that we do rely on them. We rely on them heavily and being a bailiff is not always a walk in the park. We've had situation where my full time bailiff and some of these part-time bailiffs have been in situations that are really dangerous. And so I would like for you to remember that when you're deciding how much money you should pay them out. Sims: Thank you. Ok? Sheriff? Name and address please. Kirk: Thank you Commissioners. First of all, I'd also like to echo what was already said about the hard work that you've done on the budget and actually for the first year in many, I'm not jumping up and down talking about salaries except for one little a 5% COLA, I fully support and I think that's great. You know one of the arguments that we made in the past is that all the cities were advancing ahead of us salary-wise because we didn't keep up with the cost of living. So having a 5% cost of living does keep us in parity as we agreed as we reached last year within 5% of parity and we certainly appreciate that. Last year and again this year we asked for merit pay for our officers and I realize that the sheriff s office is probably the largest office that you support with the county budget. I think we have over 200 employees. With that in mind, it becomes very critical for us in the sheriff s office to help our employees know what type of career they can face and how they can advance in that career. And have them see some hope for a future career and then make some advancement on that. In that end, several years ago, we proposed and actually augmented their salaries with a career advancement schedule. We found that to be very valuable for the employees. It isn't an automatic increase, they have to actually earn it. They do it through reading through their schedule and they know how many training hours they need, they know how many years of Vol Page 1 K-7 10 experience they need, they know what type of performance evaluation they require to earn a career advancement. This is the second year in a row that we have not had merit money. This becomes almost critical to our program in that it has been unfunded now for two years. Our employees then have been left without an opportunity. We estimate for this year it would take about $116,000.00 to meet our merit increases that we set out in the schedule. In so far as we didn't fund any last year and we didn't fund any this year. Again, I just want you to realize just how important career advancement and merit pay is for the sheriffs office and I certainly hope that if we can't do it this year that next year we re-implement merit pay so that we can keep up with our employees and their advancement in our organization. Thank you very much. Sims: Ok. Thank you. Ok. Yes sir? Name and address please? Tumlinson:Ted Tomlinson, 3005 Candy Lane, Bryan, Texas. The first time in my career that I can recall that I'm getting a demotion and I don't know what I've done wrong. When Mr. Godfrey came to me when I turned in my resignation and asked me if I'd be a part-time bailiff, I asked him what it would entail and we talked about it. Judge Smith told me what I would be making was the same I was getting then. And now here I'm getting a demotion and don't understand and I'd just like to know. Trying to get an explanation. Thank you. Sims: Ok. Yes sir? Clark: Archie Clark, Precinct 1 Constable. I'd like for the Commissioners to consider supporting my original budget that I had turned in. I appreciate it very much. Thank you. Sims: Anyone else? Ok. This is the opportunity you have. Yes ma'am? Please rise and give us your name and address, please. Dougherty: My name is Terry Dougherty, I live at... Sims: Again, I'm sorry. Dougherty: Terry Dougherty... Vol R Page 198 II Gallego: Spell that please. Dougherty: D-O-U-G-H-E-R-T-Y. And I live at 3101 Westchester Avenue in College Station. I'm director of Big Brothers/Big Sisters and we were just recently incorporated with Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Central Texas in the fall of 2005 and we're asking for the County to support this program and the biggest reason is in our studies over the last five years, children who participated with Big Brothers/Big Sisters, which is a one to one mentoring program have a high school graduation rate of 87% which is significantly higher than the State rate or even the Brazos County rate. And so I'd ask for the County to consider funding this program. Thank you. Sims: Thank you. Ok. Yes ma'am? Name and address please. Fonseca: Alma Fonseca, I'm Extension Agent at the 2619 Highway 21 West in Bryan. And I would just request that the court, again re-evaluate the current level of pay for Cheryl Anthony, our (inaudible) assistant, horticulture. For her salary to be commensurate with the duties of that position and just re-evaluate the long list that I attached or included in my budget request so that she is compensated for all the work that she does in our county. Sims: Thank you. Ok. Anything else? Someone else would like to speak? I do appreciate each and every one of you coming and making comments and making your feelings known. I do appreciate that. I will say that the adoption of the budget is not until September the 12`h at 9:00 a.m. here in the Commissioner's Courtroom, so you also have time to contact us individually if you choose to. That certainly is your prerogative. I'm going to give yall one more chance if people would like to speak. Would you like to speak before this Commissioner's Court having to do with the budget? Ok. Let me make one more comment here. This afternoon at 2:00 o'clock here in the Commissioner's Courtroom, the Court will hear comments on the proposed tax increase for 2006 and all interested persons are invited to attend said hearing and present their cause, if any, for or against the tax increase for 2006. Ok. Gentlemen, do you have anything else? Hearing none, I will close this public hearing on the proposed Brazos County budget for fiscal year ending the 30`h of September, 2007. Thank yall for coming. End of tape. Vol Page 181 4 of 4 The foregoing minutes of the Commissioners Court Public Hearing held September 5th 2006, have been examined and approved in open Court this the 'M., day of j)6jebjW- , 200., in Bryan, Brazos County, Texas. I,,1 ~3t ~ Duane Peters Commissioner, Precinct No. 2 rey C' u ey, Jr. Commiss oner, Precinct 4 Attest: a en McQueen County Clerk Lloyd Wassermann Commissioner, Precinct No. 1 Kenny Mall Commissioner, Precinct No. 3 Vol 94 Page 190 BRAZOSCOUNTY COMMISSIONERS COURT DAY OF _ 20()6 AT v AM/I Name Organization c liv c-,i flcJq Cep. Cr-. BRAZOSCOUNTY COMMISSIONERS COURT S ~i DAY OF , lll~ 20 t'6 AT / c tc o 1VI Name Organization ~~4