By Andrew Walsh
news@wbcowqel.com
Galion City Council passed the 2017 budget, and corresponding changes to the recovery plan, on a third and final reading Tuesday night. However, there were some sticking points in the final discussion. The main bone of contention involved a funding cut to the health department. In last year’s budget, the health department received $290,000 in funding, with an additional $12,000 allocated later in the year to pay for shots. The 2017 budget provided for $240,000 in funding.
As soon as discussions on the ordinance were opened, Jim Hedges asked, “Is the health department still to be underfunded?”
It was acknowledged that, yes, the health department was still set to receive less funds than last year. Susan Bean then put forth an amendment to the budget that would raise funding to the level of 2017, an increase of $62,000.
When asked what the current budget might mean for the health department, chair Trish Factor stated that it would not necessarily mean layoffs, but the two open positions that are currently in the department would certainly not be able to be filled. She also hinted that they may not be able to meet some of the current contracts they have going due to a lack of up front funds.
Mike Triplett asked Mayor Tom O’Leary if the budget would call for layoffs in any other departments. The Mayor responded with a no, but two positions in the electric line department that are set to be vacated through retirement in 2017 would be left unfilled as an act of reduction through attrition.
After a somewhat tangential round of exchanges, Bean persisted with her amendment, stating, “It’s a very necessary department and they serve the entire community.”
O’Leary responded by asking Bean to clarify if she meant upping the funding for just next year, or for the full five years of the recovery plan (which would amount to some additional $300,000). And if she did, did she intend to cut expenditures elsewhere.
“You’ll have to erode the fund balance, or cut somewhere else,” O’Leary said.
Bean confirmed that she intended the funding increase to be in place for the life of the recovery plan. Her motion was voted down, and the budget went through unamended. The ratification of the recovery plan also went through unchanged.
When asked what this meant for the health department, Factor offered a disappointed “Yet to be determined.”
“It’s most likely that we’ll have to pull our board back together. We may not be able to fulfill contract requests, contracts that would have generated revenue, due to a lack of funds up front. We’ll need to assess our programs.”
O’Leary described the cuts to the health department as being part of a wider narrative of cuts across the city budget.
“It’s because we had to cut $3.4 million from the general fund in the five years of the recovery plan. There were a lot of cuts that had to be made.”
Also ratified by council were three year contracts with the Unions of the Fraternal Order of Police and the Ohio Patrol Board Association. Police Chief Brian Saterfield was not able to attend the meeting in person, but a letter from him to the Mayor was read by O’Leary. In it he praised the good faith negotiating by the city, and was looking forward to the morale boost this would have with the units.
O’Leary was equally complimentary to the union members. Whereas Saterfield spoke of good faith, O’Leary complimented the “good will” with which the union members negotiated. He expressed great satisfaction with contracts that were “Fair to all,” the taxpayers, the union members, and the management.