The Patrick County Board of Supervisors on Monday amended the fiscal year 2021-2022 budget with an increase of $1,338,897.06.
Finance Officer Lori Jones said the amendment was more of a housekeeping measure because the Patrick County School Board’s budget is incorporated into the county’s budget.
“The fiscal year has ended, but these items have already been taken care of, we just need to do our due diligence to amend the budget formally,” she said.
The board also heard comments about amending the fiscal year 2022-2023 budget with an increase of $5,319,225.20. Jones said the amount is mostly for carry over funds from 2022 that were not spent that year but will be spent in 2023.
“In addition, they’re going to use $300,000 from the additional one percent sales tax fund among capital improvements,” she said.
Bill Clark, chairman of the Economic Development Authority (EDA) Board, said he does not understand how a budget for a year that has already closed out could be amended, or why the board would want or need to change a budget for a previous closed out year.
“It cannot be just because actual spending changed, or you would have to amend every prior year budget whenever there was a one percent difference in actual versus budgeted spending,” he said.
Clark also asked what would prevent the board from going back to 1979 and changing that budget.
“This part of the proposed change in the FYE 2022 budget is 2.38 percent, and I wonder why the items listed were overlooked,” he said.
Clark said his research indicated the auditors determined in 2021 the Federal Food Services funds needed to be spent by the end of fiscal year 2022, and the board had time to include it in the budget. “Second, everyone who buys something in Patrick County realized we have a one percent extra tax that was passed for School System Capital Improvements. Why was that overlooked in the budget,” he said.
Finally, Clark asked why there’s an additional county “Additional Local Funding” of $485,487 that is being shown as “Maintenance” and is similar to a published number the school system needed to receive for match funds from the state.
Clyde DeLoach, of the Blue Ridge District, asked Patrick County Schools Superintendent Jason Wood to field the questions.
Wood said the school system did not receive Gov. Youngkin’s budget until early June. “Therefore, we did not have the total calculation number for the required local match that we needed from the county. So that difference of $485,000 is the amount that the school system needed to certify that we met required local match,” he said.
The “Maintenance” category, he said, is how the school system keeps its record tracking. “So, it has nothing to do with the county’s budget. When we receive an appropriation, we have to ask for our budget, and that’s how we categorize that money, because in a categorical spending budget that was the category that was underfunded,” he said.
On the recommendation of the school system’s auditors, Wood said the division waited until the end of the year to list the Federal Food Service funds. “Because typically in a fiscal year we do not spend nor receive the amount of money that we built into our budget. This year we had to, to meet required local match. So, therefore that’s why we waited until June to list the 2020-2021 carry over food service money,” he said.
*Heard from Bradley Hughes, of the Maintenance Department, who previously requested a closed-door meeting with the board. Hughes said the safety and liability in the administration are unsafe, with unsafe working conditions. “People are not doing their jobs that they are supposed to be doing. We have a dump truck down there that blew up and said several times that it needed to be fixed. It was never fixed,” he said.
Hughes said the department brought up issues with a bucket truck for years that had a one-wheel brake on it. “You finally decided to let us take it off the road, and yet it was still used again after the tags had been taken off,” he said.
Hughes added the maintenance department is not allowed to do maintenance on the equipment unless told to do so. “I want to let you know that I will be putting in my notice because I will no longer work here for chump change and be forced to do jobs that I shouldn’t have to do. Not only that, I was told to use stuff that I shouldn’t be using like using a ladder missing three rungs,” he said.
*Approved a resolution naming the week of Sept. 17 through Sept. 23 Constitution Week.
*Approved a resolution in support of a grant application from the Industrial Revitalization Fund (IRF) through the Department of Housing & Community Development (DHCD) for Arthur Lucas, owner of Freehouse Brewery, who recently purchased Cockrams Mill Complex and plans to turn it into the Meadows of Dan Freehouse, a local brewery.
In other matters, the board:
*Approved giving $124,493.89 to the Stuart Volunteer Fire Department for a refurbishment of its 100-foot aerial ladder.
*Denied a request for funds that would be used to replace the Patrick County Courthouse’s carpet.
*Approved a resolution to support an IFR application for phase two of the Business Development Center. Sean Adkins, the county’s director of economic development, said the application is to help turn the facility’s downstairs into a childcare center.
*Approved an ARPA request for $755 to upgrade the panic buttons in the Treasurer’s Office.
*Approved a grant administration’s conflict of interest policy.
*Tabled a grant administration’s policies and procedures policy until the next meeting.
*Nominated Doug Turner as a representative to the Solid Waste Committee.
*Approved sending Donna Shough, Assistant County Administrator and Human Resources Director, to Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) training, and to be the county’s representative.
*Heard a year-end report from Treasurer Sandra Stone.
*Approved producing a letter of support for the VATI grant for 2023.
*Approved adding a full-time position to the Treasurer’s Department.
*Approved the meeting minutes.
*Approved the bills, claims, and appropriations.
Denise Stirewalt, of the Peter’s Creek District, attended the meeting virtually.
