Budget Commission Special Meeting – July 10, 2023
Meeting Details: The Geauga County Budget Commission met in Special Session on Monday, July 10, 2023 at 10:00 am in the Auditor’s Conference Room at 215 Main Street, Chardon, Ohio. This meeting was in person with a virtual option via MS Teams.
Meeting Attendance: Prosecutor Jim Flaiz, Auditor Chuck Walder, and Chief Deputy Treasurer Caroline
Mansfield (substituting for Treasurer Chris Hitchcock).
Staff Attendance: Chief Deputy Auditor Ron Leyde, Deputy Auditors Tammy Most and Kristen Sinatra, and Fiscal Office Manager Pam McMahan.
County/School/Township/Village Representatives: ADP Chief Deputy Administrator Frank Antenucci.
Minutes: N/A.
Revenue Certification Requests:
The following Revenue Certifications were approved:
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West Geauga Local School District - Amendment #1 - $52,982,590.86 in the general fund, $7,986,589.46 in special revenue funds, $2,213,637.13 in capital project funds, $1,699,679.99 in enterprise funds, $265,645.11 in internal service funds, and $319,493.16 in fiduciary funds for a total of $65,467,635.71.
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Russell Township - Amendment #5 - $2,385,982.08 in the general fund, $10,820,626.47 in special revenue funds, $5,083.80 in debt service funds, and $2,620,255.09 in capital project funds for a total of $15,831,947.44.
This amendment increased the police levy fund by $58,000.
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Geauga-Trumbull Solid Waste (GTSW) - Amendment #2 - $5,730,387.12 in the general fund, $38,517.34 in special revenue funds, and $24,313.07 in capital project funds for a total of $5,793,217.53.
Ms. Sinatra explained the steps to this amendment. First, GTSW had a supplemental appropriation transferring out $38,500. Next, they did a cash transfer in the same amount from that supplemental appropriation into Fund #6020- the Recycle Ohio fund. Mr. Walder stated that the goal of this is to make money available to fund township grants. The Budget Commissioners commended GTSW Director Jennifer Jones, with Mr. Flaiz noting that she “does a fantastic job.”
Discussion:
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Kenston Local School District Response to Budget Commission Letter - As noted at the June 30 Budget Commission meeting, Kenston is over-appropriated by $325,000 in Fund #507 - ESSER/CARES (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Funds provided by the CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) Act). See the June 30 Budget Commission meeting report. Commissioners notified Kenston of this fact via letter immediately after their June 30 meeting, and Kenston replied saying that the over-appropriation will be fixed by carryover. Mr. Walder noted that, though this is true, the fact remains that Kenston is over-appropriated now. He went on to explain that this could be a problem if they are audited, as Kenston lacks a Budget Commission certificate saying their appropriations do not exceed their certified revenue. Mr. Flaiz wondered if the Budget Commission should send Kenston a certificate stating that their appropriations do exceed revenue. Mr. Walder advised against this, as this is not required by statute and the subtle wording change from “appropriations do not exceed revenue” to “appropriations do exceed revenue” might be missed. Therefore, no certificate was issued, and Kenston will continue to lack a certificate stating their appropriations do not exceed revenue until their over-appropriation in Fund #507 is rectified.
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Hambden Township 2024 Budget: Deputy Auditor Kristen Sinatra told the Budget Commissioners about a conversation she had with Hambden Township Fiscal Officer Mike Romans when he dropped off the Hambden 2024 budget to the Auditor’s Office. She stated that Mr. Romans said he was aware that he had “expensed everything,” but he indicated that there would be enough funds to cover the expenses due to carryover. Ms. Sinatra explained that the carryover comes from Hambden Township failing to reduce their expenses for the current year even though there were several projects that were not actually completed. Mr. Walder said that he will address the issue when he reviews their 2024 budget and noted that “the public doesn't see your carryover; the public sees what you budgeted.” He went on to state that Hambden fiscal staff may need another round of training.
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2024 Budget Hearings Preparations: Mr. Walder noted that budget submissions are due next week on July 20 and indicated that not many have been received yet. He stated that Budget Coordinator Paul Pestello will not be able to invest much time in Budget Hearings preparations, as he is currently assisting a school district that has lost its treasurer. To prepare for the Budget Hearings, Mr. Walder directed the Auditor’s Office staff to create a template showing beginning cash balances of all entity funds as of January 1, as well as information on whether or not the funds are protected (unable to be rolled up into the general fund) or unprotected (able to be rolled into the general fund). Mr. Flaiz noted that he would like information comparing estimated versus actual expenses for the previous two years as well.
Public Comment:
This observer asked: 1) whether or not the minutes from the previous meeting were approved (they were not) and 2) who were the meeting attendees not appearing on camera (Mr. Walder indicated that Mr. Leyde and Mr. Antenucci were also present).
More Information and Posted Minutes: Available on Auditor website
Next Meeting: July 24, 2023 at 10:00 am in the Auditor’s Conference Room at 215 Main Street, Chardon, Ohio.
Name of Observer: Sarah McGlone
Name of Editor: Anne Ondrey
Name of Reviewer: Gail Roussey
Submitted 7/10/2023
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