The Lebanon Reporter recently conducted video interviews of the candidates for contested county races. Each candidate was given one minute (only one minute!) to respond to each of three questions:
■ What do you want voters to know about you?
■ What do you hope to accomplish if elected?
■ What separates you from your opponents?
My responses are below. I would welcome your thoughts and feedback.
Monday, April 30, 2012
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Reporter/Times-Sentinel Questionnaire
Recently, the publishers of the Lebanon Reporter and the Zionsville Times-Sentinel asked candidates to respond to a questionnaire in preparation for running a special section in their newspapers before the upcoming primary. Below are my answers to those questions. (I apologize for any formatting/readability issues, but I'm still trying to figure out the new Blogger interface!)
Questions: 1. With rising expenses, such as the cost of fuel, and shrinking revenue, is a local option income tax inevitable? If so, what type? If not, why not?
With a County Option Income Tax rate of 1.0% and no additional local option taxes, we have one of the lowest income tax rates in the state. While the county’s revenue streams have shrunk dramatically, I do not foresee an additional income tax in the near future. While reaching previous levels will take many years, Boone County is in an excellent position to grow our way out of our current constraints. As the Council’s representative on the Boone EDC Board, I am committed to controlled, quality growth as the best way to increase revenues long-term. The one local option tax possibility I will continue to monitor closely is that for public safety, which must be a top priority for any government. In addition to that option currently requiring enactment of yet another tax, our overall revenue picture is still too uncertain to justify that decision.
2. Why are you qualified to serve on the council?
The complexity of the county budget far exceeds even what I anticipated when I first ran for the position four years ago. While my service on the Jackson Township Board and my educational background have been helpful, the experience of actually serving on the council has been invaluable. Between the national economic crisis and the wholesale – and ongoing – changes made by the state legislature, the council has dealt with unprecedented change. My role in developing a longer-term financial plan for the county and my role on the Economic Development Corporation board, as well as my continuing relationship with the Association of Indiana Counties and our state legislators, give me invaluable insight on the ever-evolving budget situation. The knowledge base I’ve gained and the relationships I’ve established through the council give me confidence I can be an even more effective public servant in a second term.
3. One county department has multiple consultants on retainer, and the use of consultants has grown. Is this a good use of taxpayer money?
While I sometimes question various departments’ funding for consultants – and will continue to do so – I am generally satisfied that taxpayers are getting their money’s worth through these arrangements. Several functions of county government require technical expertise or specialized skills far beyond the core mission of services our employees deliver every day. Few county governments can afford to pay a competitive salary for such highly-trained employees. This often means it is a better use of our limited budget to bring such individuals in on a temporary and as-needed basis as consultants rather than to maintain the expense of a full-time employee, even if we could afford to keep such a person from leaving for better-paid opportunities. While each situation is different and circumstances often change, our department heads and elected officials generally do a great job making the best use possible of the funds at their disposal.
4. What plans should the county be making in case the economic recovery continues to stall?
I’m hopeful that our revenues have bottomed out, but I believe the conservative approach the council has followed the past three years will have to continue even if the recovery does build momentum. While the council has pulled from the county’s reserve funds the past two years to ease the impact of the drastic drop in revenue without laying off employees or cutting services, those funds are still healthy, so we do not face an imminent crisis. If revenues do not pick up, the county will have to begin cutting employees. Toward that end, I will continue to advocate for implementing a policy requiring council approval before any new employee could be hired to fill a vacant position. While other options for increasing revenue cannot be dismissed out of hand, we need to be more certain of our position before making those decisions.
5. Are there opportunities for the county to consolidate with other governmental entities for greater efficiency?
Boone County is fortunate to have dedicated leadership at every level of government. Inroads have been made in many areas of cooperation between the municipalities and with the county, but we still have a lot of room for improvement. As we all face similar funding issues, every official is conscious of the need to seek such opportunities, but putting them into practice is often more difficult than one might expect. Two prime areas for cooperation are planning and roads. Planning of all types is something that concerns both the county at large and each municipality, and I’m hopeful better communication will lead to more opportunities for savings. The county and the city of Lebanon recently implemented an agreement to share a building inspector, and that may serve as an opening to other efficiencies. Not every idea will pan out, but we will continue to be on the alert for opportunities.
Questions: 1. With rising expenses, such as the cost of fuel, and shrinking revenue, is a local option income tax inevitable? If so, what type? If not, why not?
With a County Option Income Tax rate of 1.0% and no additional local option taxes, we have one of the lowest income tax rates in the state. While the county’s revenue streams have shrunk dramatically, I do not foresee an additional income tax in the near future. While reaching previous levels will take many years, Boone County is in an excellent position to grow our way out of our current constraints. As the Council’s representative on the Boone EDC Board, I am committed to controlled, quality growth as the best way to increase revenues long-term. The one local option tax possibility I will continue to monitor closely is that for public safety, which must be a top priority for any government. In addition to that option currently requiring enactment of yet another tax, our overall revenue picture is still too uncertain to justify that decision.
2. Why are you qualified to serve on the council?
The complexity of the county budget far exceeds even what I anticipated when I first ran for the position four years ago. While my service on the Jackson Township Board and my educational background have been helpful, the experience of actually serving on the council has been invaluable. Between the national economic crisis and the wholesale – and ongoing – changes made by the state legislature, the council has dealt with unprecedented change. My role in developing a longer-term financial plan for the county and my role on the Economic Development Corporation board, as well as my continuing relationship with the Association of Indiana Counties and our state legislators, give me invaluable insight on the ever-evolving budget situation. The knowledge base I’ve gained and the relationships I’ve established through the council give me confidence I can be an even more effective public servant in a second term.
3. One county department has multiple consultants on retainer, and the use of consultants has grown. Is this a good use of taxpayer money?
While I sometimes question various departments’ funding for consultants – and will continue to do so – I am generally satisfied that taxpayers are getting their money’s worth through these arrangements. Several functions of county government require technical expertise or specialized skills far beyond the core mission of services our employees deliver every day. Few county governments can afford to pay a competitive salary for such highly-trained employees. This often means it is a better use of our limited budget to bring such individuals in on a temporary and as-needed basis as consultants rather than to maintain the expense of a full-time employee, even if we could afford to keep such a person from leaving for better-paid opportunities. While each situation is different and circumstances often change, our department heads and elected officials generally do a great job making the best use possible of the funds at their disposal.
4. What plans should the county be making in case the economic recovery continues to stall?
I’m hopeful that our revenues have bottomed out, but I believe the conservative approach the council has followed the past three years will have to continue even if the recovery does build momentum. While the council has pulled from the county’s reserve funds the past two years to ease the impact of the drastic drop in revenue without laying off employees or cutting services, those funds are still healthy, so we do not face an imminent crisis. If revenues do not pick up, the county will have to begin cutting employees. Toward that end, I will continue to advocate for implementing a policy requiring council approval before any new employee could be hired to fill a vacant position. While other options for increasing revenue cannot be dismissed out of hand, we need to be more certain of our position before making those decisions.
5. Are there opportunities for the county to consolidate with other governmental entities for greater efficiency?
Boone County is fortunate to have dedicated leadership at every level of government. Inroads have been made in many areas of cooperation between the municipalities and with the county, but we still have a lot of room for improvement. As we all face similar funding issues, every official is conscious of the need to seek such opportunities, but putting them into practice is often more difficult than one might expect. Two prime areas for cooperation are planning and roads. Planning of all types is something that concerns both the county at large and each municipality, and I’m hopeful better communication will lead to more opportunities for savings. The county and the city of Lebanon recently implemented an agreement to share a building inspector, and that may serve as an opening to other efficiencies. Not every idea will pan out, but we will continue to be on the alert for opportunities.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Notes -- April 2012 Council Meeting
Note: These are my personal notes from the council meeting. They are NOT the official minutes, nor should they be construed as an official record of any kind.
Boone County Council
4/10/2012
Present: All Council Members present.
The council approved the minutes of the March meeting.
The Council sang Happy Birthday to Council member Butch Smith.
RE-APPROPRIATIONS:
None.
ADDITIONAL APPROPRIATIONS:
Auditor (Melody Price):
Requested $8740 to pay the remaining installment on a contract with GUTS for conducting the most recent tax sale. This is money in, money out, coming from part of the revenue generated by the tax sale itself.
Sheriff (Ken Campbell):
Requested roughly $940 in postage, inmate medical and inmate supplies (damages), as well as not quite $600 in part-time for reimbursement from sheriff’s sales. All these are transfers of reimbursements.
Circuit Court (Judge Jeff Edens)
Judge Edens introduced new Magistrate Sally Berish, who was recently appointed (April 1st) to that post (juvenile court IV-D magistrate) by the state. This means the state will now reimburse two-thirds of Ms. Berish’s salary, and beginning next year she will be receiving the state benefits package. This is a very positive development for the county in a variety of ways. Ms. Berish will essentially have the powers of a judge, which should help alleviate the need for an additional court in the county for the foreseeable future. For budget purposes, this means a difference of $16, 464, pro-rated for the year, that the county will not be spending. The council approved a Negative Additional (two months in a row!), transferring that amount out of the salary line. The council also amended the salary ordinance to reflect the new magistrate salary of $41, 393.
Unrelatedly, Judge Edens requested an additional $2000 for medical/psychological services. Approved.
Before moving on, Council President Steve Jacob addressed the state’s recent “adjusted distribution” of County Option Income Tax revenue. Boone County received essentially $3.97M, but that will be distributed amongst all the county’s taxing entities. While the details have not yet been released by the state, the county general fund will likely receive about $1.4M of that. No word has been given yet, either on what impact this adjustment will have on the county’s distribution of COIT revenue for remainder of the year. Jacob, Thompson and I all pointed out that this additional money would still be less than what the county has pulled from its reserves the past two years to maintain operations. Jacob also questioned the wisdom of acting before the state completed the outside audit it has now begun, and before all details of the distribution have released.
Highway (Rick Carney):
The council approved an additional of not quite $6,500 for a truck driver salary, as discussed at last month’s meeting. This is overall part of a much bigger savings plan due to restructuring in the highway department.
Additionally, Mr. Carney submitted several large requests from various funds (Rainy Day, Economic Development, Food & Beverage, CCD) for funding a summer road maintenance program. The advertised totals were as much as $2.5M, though Carney said that he had a maintenance plan totaling roughly $1.770M. After extensive discussion, the council approved $1M out of the economic development fund (which retains a balance of just over $3M) and $500,000 out of the Food & Beverage Fund.
Health (Cindy Murphy):
Ms. Murphy discussed the department’s past practice regarding their process for purchasing vaccine and reimbursing automatically. A new state accounting decision now requires that each transfer be presented as an additional request (much like the Sheriff’s department does with several items). She had submitted a request for $317, but stated that the department did not expect to need it this year. The council decided to approve it anyway.
NEW BUSINESS:
Assessor Lisa Garoffolo presented updates to the GUTS re-assessment contract reflecting the recently-adopted “rolling re-assessment” plan. The final form approved by the legislature allows the county to assess one-fourth of its property each year, so all property will still be assessed every four years, but the hope is that spreading it out will allow more accurate assessment. The commissioners approved an updated contract with GUTS last week. Financially, Garoffolo expects the current levy to be sufficient but anticipates an increase in the future. In terms of the adjustments made due to the just-completed re-assessment, GUT reports finding tens of millions of dollars in new property, but also some adjustments for mis-entered information which might reduce the assessment for some individuals. Overall, though, the county’s total assessed valuation (AV) should increase significantly. This should mean a reduced tax rate for the vast majority of taxpayers. In areas where taxpayers are currently hitting the tax cap credit threshold (mostly Zionsville, Whitestown, Lebanon, Advance), this might mean some additional revenue for taxing units, as fewer taxpayers would be beyond the cap.
Auditor Melody Price distributed a monthly financial update, as well as a breakdown of health insurance expenditures over the past three years. Price and Treasurer Deanna Willhoite also answered several questions concerning last week’s new disbursement from the state. Generally, they have received no information from the state other than a notice of transfer of funds, which has been noticed with multiple different totals. NO information regarding dispersal of those funds to other entities, the effect on the remaining monthly disbursements for the rest of the year, the ongoing withholding of funds from the county from the alleged OVERpayment of COIT funds in years past. The consensus was that no actions should be taken until more information was forthcoming, which would likely mean no action this year, though the “new” money would be included in deliberations this summer in setting the 2013 budget.
Cindy Murphy of the Health Department pointed out an oversight in the salary ordinance which left off employee payments from the Tobacco-Free Boone County grant. The council moved to update the ordinance to correct the oversight.
Ms. Murphy also advised the council of the resignation of a part-time public health nurse. She asked the council’s approval to re-fill the position, and also to amend the salary ordinance to reflect an hourly rate of $25/hour, rather than the current $20. This would not affect the budgeted annual cap of $28,000. Council approved.
OLD BUSINESS:
Commissioner Marc Applegate updated the council on the progress of talks between the county and the Zionsville Town Council regarding Bridge 220 (the Ford Road Bridge). Applegate and representatives of the Town met last month with engineers from Barker Engineering and VMI (?) Engineering, which was hired jointly by the town and county to review the bridge project. That group will be meeting again next week. Applegate feels they are moving positively toward a satisfactory plan to move forward.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
Sheriff Ken Campbell addressed the possibility of contracting with Umbaugh (or some similar firm) to assist in assessing the impact of the new 911 funding formula passed through the state legislature.
Sheriff Campbell also addressed his ongoing concern about revenue options, including a Public Safety Local Option Income Tax and increasing the Cumulative Capital Development Fund rate.
Cindy Murphy of the Health Department echoed Sheriff Campbell’s sentiment regarding adopting additional revenue measures. She encouraged enactment of a county Wheel Tax. Murphy lives in Clinton County, where they do pay a wheel tax, which was recently raised from $25 to $40 per vehicle. Murphy advocated that the county take the lead in enacting such a tax.
Rick Carney advised the council that at next month’s meeting he would be coming forward on behalf of the commissioners to request funds for building an additional storage facility for unused salt due to the mild winter. The Highway Department is committed to buy an additional tonnage later this year, and will need somewhere dry to keep it.
Gene Thompson suggested altering the scheduled joint evening meeting (May 22) with the commissioners and instead holding our regularly scheduled June 12th meeting in the evening and inviting the commissioners to join, without forcing a particular joint agenda. After much discussion, the council agreed to this motion. The council’s June meeting will be held June 12th at 6:30 p.m, in the regular council chambers at the Courthouse Annex.
Meeting adjourned at roughly 10:30.
Next regularly-scheduled council meeting will be WEDNESDAY, May 9, 2012.
Boone County Council
4/10/2012
Present: All Council Members present.
The council approved the minutes of the March meeting.
The Council sang Happy Birthday to Council member Butch Smith.
RE-APPROPRIATIONS:
None.
ADDITIONAL APPROPRIATIONS:
Auditor (Melody Price):
Requested $8740 to pay the remaining installment on a contract with GUTS for conducting the most recent tax sale. This is money in, money out, coming from part of the revenue generated by the tax sale itself.
Sheriff (Ken Campbell):
Requested roughly $940 in postage, inmate medical and inmate supplies (damages), as well as not quite $600 in part-time for reimbursement from sheriff’s sales. All these are transfers of reimbursements.
Circuit Court (Judge Jeff Edens)
Judge Edens introduced new Magistrate Sally Berish, who was recently appointed (April 1st) to that post (juvenile court IV-D magistrate) by the state. This means the state will now reimburse two-thirds of Ms. Berish’s salary, and beginning next year she will be receiving the state benefits package. This is a very positive development for the county in a variety of ways. Ms. Berish will essentially have the powers of a judge, which should help alleviate the need for an additional court in the county for the foreseeable future. For budget purposes, this means a difference of $16, 464, pro-rated for the year, that the county will not be spending. The council approved a Negative Additional (two months in a row!), transferring that amount out of the salary line. The council also amended the salary ordinance to reflect the new magistrate salary of $41, 393.
Unrelatedly, Judge Edens requested an additional $2000 for medical/psychological services. Approved.
Before moving on, Council President Steve Jacob addressed the state’s recent “adjusted distribution” of County Option Income Tax revenue. Boone County received essentially $3.97M, but that will be distributed amongst all the county’s taxing entities. While the details have not yet been released by the state, the county general fund will likely receive about $1.4M of that. No word has been given yet, either on what impact this adjustment will have on the county’s distribution of COIT revenue for remainder of the year. Jacob, Thompson and I all pointed out that this additional money would still be less than what the county has pulled from its reserves the past two years to maintain operations. Jacob also questioned the wisdom of acting before the state completed the outside audit it has now begun, and before all details of the distribution have released.
Highway (Rick Carney):
The council approved an additional of not quite $6,500 for a truck driver salary, as discussed at last month’s meeting. This is overall part of a much bigger savings plan due to restructuring in the highway department.
Additionally, Mr. Carney submitted several large requests from various funds (Rainy Day, Economic Development, Food & Beverage, CCD) for funding a summer road maintenance program. The advertised totals were as much as $2.5M, though Carney said that he had a maintenance plan totaling roughly $1.770M. After extensive discussion, the council approved $1M out of the economic development fund (which retains a balance of just over $3M) and $500,000 out of the Food & Beverage Fund.
Health (Cindy Murphy):
Ms. Murphy discussed the department’s past practice regarding their process for purchasing vaccine and reimbursing automatically. A new state accounting decision now requires that each transfer be presented as an additional request (much like the Sheriff’s department does with several items). She had submitted a request for $317, but stated that the department did not expect to need it this year. The council decided to approve it anyway.
NEW BUSINESS:
Assessor Lisa Garoffolo presented updates to the GUTS re-assessment contract reflecting the recently-adopted “rolling re-assessment” plan. The final form approved by the legislature allows the county to assess one-fourth of its property each year, so all property will still be assessed every four years, but the hope is that spreading it out will allow more accurate assessment. The commissioners approved an updated contract with GUTS last week. Financially, Garoffolo expects the current levy to be sufficient but anticipates an increase in the future. In terms of the adjustments made due to the just-completed re-assessment, GUT reports finding tens of millions of dollars in new property, but also some adjustments for mis-entered information which might reduce the assessment for some individuals. Overall, though, the county’s total assessed valuation (AV) should increase significantly. This should mean a reduced tax rate for the vast majority of taxpayers. In areas where taxpayers are currently hitting the tax cap credit threshold (mostly Zionsville, Whitestown, Lebanon, Advance), this might mean some additional revenue for taxing units, as fewer taxpayers would be beyond the cap.
Auditor Melody Price distributed a monthly financial update, as well as a breakdown of health insurance expenditures over the past three years. Price and Treasurer Deanna Willhoite also answered several questions concerning last week’s new disbursement from the state. Generally, they have received no information from the state other than a notice of transfer of funds, which has been noticed with multiple different totals. NO information regarding dispersal of those funds to other entities, the effect on the remaining monthly disbursements for the rest of the year, the ongoing withholding of funds from the county from the alleged OVERpayment of COIT funds in years past. The consensus was that no actions should be taken until more information was forthcoming, which would likely mean no action this year, though the “new” money would be included in deliberations this summer in setting the 2013 budget.
Cindy Murphy of the Health Department pointed out an oversight in the salary ordinance which left off employee payments from the Tobacco-Free Boone County grant. The council moved to update the ordinance to correct the oversight.
Ms. Murphy also advised the council of the resignation of a part-time public health nurse. She asked the council’s approval to re-fill the position, and also to amend the salary ordinance to reflect an hourly rate of $25/hour, rather than the current $20. This would not affect the budgeted annual cap of $28,000. Council approved.
OLD BUSINESS:
Commissioner Marc Applegate updated the council on the progress of talks between the county and the Zionsville Town Council regarding Bridge 220 (the Ford Road Bridge). Applegate and representatives of the Town met last month with engineers from Barker Engineering and VMI (?) Engineering, which was hired jointly by the town and county to review the bridge project. That group will be meeting again next week. Applegate feels they are moving positively toward a satisfactory plan to move forward.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
Sheriff Ken Campbell addressed the possibility of contracting with Umbaugh (or some similar firm) to assist in assessing the impact of the new 911 funding formula passed through the state legislature.
Sheriff Campbell also addressed his ongoing concern about revenue options, including a Public Safety Local Option Income Tax and increasing the Cumulative Capital Development Fund rate.
Cindy Murphy of the Health Department echoed Sheriff Campbell’s sentiment regarding adopting additional revenue measures. She encouraged enactment of a county Wheel Tax. Murphy lives in Clinton County, where they do pay a wheel tax, which was recently raised from $25 to $40 per vehicle. Murphy advocated that the county take the lead in enacting such a tax.
Rick Carney advised the council that at next month’s meeting he would be coming forward on behalf of the commissioners to request funds for building an additional storage facility for unused salt due to the mild winter. The Highway Department is committed to buy an additional tonnage later this year, and will need somewhere dry to keep it.
Gene Thompson suggested altering the scheduled joint evening meeting (May 22) with the commissioners and instead holding our regularly scheduled June 12th meeting in the evening and inviting the commissioners to join, without forcing a particular joint agenda. After much discussion, the council agreed to this motion. The council’s June meeting will be held June 12th at 6:30 p.m, in the regular council chambers at the Courthouse Annex.
Meeting adjourned at roughly 10:30.
Next regularly-scheduled council meeting will be WEDNESDAY, May 9, 2012.
Saturday, April 7, 2012
Agenda -- April 2012 Council Meeting
BOONE COUNTY COUNCIL
BUSINESS AGENDA FOR April 10, 2012
CONNIE LAMAR MEETING ROOM, #105
116 W. Washington St
Lebanon, IN 46052
Call Meeting to Order – 8:30 a.m.
Approval of Minutes from the March 13, 2012 Meeting
Re-Appropriation Requests:
None
Additional Appropriation Requests:
Auditor, Sheriff, Circuit Court, Highway, Rainy Day, Food & Beverage, CCD, Economic Development Fund, Health
New Business:
Lisa Garoffolo, Assessor -- Re-Assessment update
Melody Price, Auditor -- Financial Updates county general and insurance
Old Business:
Public Comment:
Document Signing:
Additionals, Salary Resolution, March 2012 Minutes
Adjournment
This agenda is subject to change.
BUSINESS AGENDA FOR April 10, 2012
CONNIE LAMAR MEETING ROOM, #105
116 W. Washington St
Lebanon, IN 46052
Call Meeting to Order – 8:30 a.m.
Approval of Minutes from the March 13, 2012 Meeting
Re-Appropriation Requests:
None
Additional Appropriation Requests:
Auditor, Sheriff, Circuit Court, Highway, Rainy Day, Food & Beverage, CCD, Economic Development Fund, Health
New Business:
Lisa Garoffolo, Assessor -- Re-Assessment update
Melody Price, Auditor -- Financial Updates county general and insurance
Old Business:
Public Comment:
Document Signing:
Additionals, Salary Resolution, March 2012 Minutes
Adjournment
This agenda is subject to change.
Monday, April 2, 2012
Voter Registration Ends Soon!
Only one week left to register to vote! If you're a first time voter of have moved and need to update your registration, visit http://www.indianavoters.com/ and you can do it all from your computer. Absentee voter applications and other info also available. Registration for the primary closes and absentee voting begins next week!
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About Me
- David Rodgers
- Lebanon, IN, United States
- I am a life-long resident of Boone County and a 1989 graduate of Western Boone High School. My wife Rylin and I, along with our children Matthew and Laura, live southwest of Lebanon on the old family dairy farm that has been in my family nearly 70 years. I am a graduate of Purdue University, and for the past 20+ years have taught history, government and English at Zionsville High School. I have a Master's degree in American Studies from Purdue and am working -- slowly -- toward a Master of Public Affairs degree at IUPUI. Before being elected to the County Council in 2008, I served six years on the Jackson Township Board, having first been elected in 2002. I also serve as the Council's representative on the board of the Boone County Economic Development Corporation.
