The Pine Bluff City Council committee budget hearings kicked off Monday morning in the City Hall chambers and lasted throughout the afternoon in preparation for determining funding for city operations for 2022.
Department heads under the Traffic & Aviation, Public Health and Welfare and Economic and Community Development committees met with their committee council members and Mayor Shirley Washington to discuss revenues for their departments.
Finance Director Gina Devers compiled the 134-page budget book with detailed line items for each city department. George Stepps and William Moss were present as the city of Pine Bluff's financial consultants.
Traffic and Aviation started the hearings with chairwoman Joni Alexander and committee members Steven Shaner and Ivan Whitfield.
Doug Hale, Pine Bluff Regional Airport-Grider Field director, requested $143,400, which was essentially the same as this year's spending.
During the hearing, Hale said there had been an increase of $2,501 in the Arkansas Municipal League property insurance policy, which he would need to be adjusted. He also requested a $15,000 carryover from a grant to complete phase four of an airport project.
Hale said improvements will be made to Hanger Row Road, for which the state will pay 90%, and the remainder will be paid by the city. Hale said the $15,000 is matching money for the project and that he would like to complete it in 2022.
Public Health & Welfare, chaired by Council Member Steven Shaner, covered the cemetery, health department, Area Agency on Aging, sanitation fees and transit.
Gail Blackerby, cemetery director, had a budget increase of $42,632, of which approximately $21,000 was due to an estimated payout of sick and vacation time to Blackerby, who plans to retire in February.
The remaining funds are for general expenses and ground maintenance.
LaKesha Collins of the Health Department requested $47,000, which was $1,500 over the 2021 budget.
Collins said their utilities are about $3,000 a month in the current building.
Plans to move into a new building, where utilites should be less, are planned for January, but until then, she said, the old building is absorbing the bulk of her budget.
According to Collins, there are some months that her office comes up short on finances because the utility bills are so high.
She also said she wasn't sure how the budget would differ, but she said she hopes the new "energy-efficient building" will cause a reduction in utility bills.
Financial consultant Stepps said if the Health Department needed more funds, officials could make a budget adjustment request.
There was no change or increase in the budget for the Area Agency on Aging. Agency Director Kathy Tynes, did, however, thank the city for their continued help.
"We appreciate the support of the city," said Tynes, who said she has been with the agency since 2007.
Tynes added they have not encountered any cuts in their services during the pandemic and are slowly getting people back in the center.
The transit budget had a decrease of $35,930 in requested funds with a total of $1,522,384 awarded in grants.
Devers advised the committee that the budget for sanitation had increased by 5% due to the agreement the city of Pine Bluff had with Waste Management.
The Economic and Community Development Committee ended the budget hearings for the day in a nearly hourlong afternoon session.
The chairman, Council Member Glen Brown Sr., said that the director of Economic and Community Development Larry Matthews did not have any disputes or adjustments to his budget.
Assistant Director Lori Walker said the overall budget compared to 2021 was less because they divided their staff among the programs.
According to Walker, they work with a fixed amount of revenue. In preparation for the budget, Walker said they see who will be working in what grant and use that to divide the salary across the programs.
Though Matthews had no budget adjustments, he did inquire about a salary increase. Matthews' current salary is approximately $66,000.
Matthews, who oversees all city projects, managing approximately $20 million worth of projects, said project delivery was a direct expense that would be billed to the city covering the time spent on a project because not all grants cover administrative costs.
"Every time we get some money, that means that's more work that we have to do," said Matthews, who noted the $16 million the city was awarded in Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act money, the Highway Department project and the infrastructure funds that the city will be receiving. "I can't keep working for the same rate of pay with regards to doing all of the projects."
According to Matthews, the previous director and staff didn't have to handle a heavy workload of projects because the bond money that passed hadn't taken effect yet.
"When we took over in 2013, Community Development was not doing any of these projects," said Matthews, who compared his job performance to the work of three. "Nobody else in the state does what we do. Not a single entity in Little Rock. We manage more properties in one department than anybody in the state."
Washington said there would be no salary budget adjustments for all department heads during this time, but she said she does plan to conduct another meeting in the future with the Ways and Means Committee with recommendations for salary adjustments.
All budgets were voted on and passed by committee members.
Devers said all budget recommendations will now go to the Ways and Means Committee, which will make the ultimate decision and determine where the budget adjustment funds will come from.
Committee budget hearings will continue at 9:30 a.m. today with the Public Works and Development and Planning committees.
