Moore County Schools [MCS] Superintendent, Dr. Susan Purser, came to the Board of Commissioners' Tuesday, April 19 meeting requesting an additional $3.1 million in funding after “extreme measures” by the School Board to find the money without asking the County for additional help.
Overall, the MCS has had to scramble to deal with a projected $12.1 million revenue to expense gap in its Fiscal Year 2011-2012 budget after losing $5.2 million in federal stimulus funding and facing a combination of revenue cuts and pass-through expenses from the state that total $6.9 million.
Dr. Purser said she and her staff have, “dug painfully deep,” to find $5 million in reductions: eliminating approximately 100 positions, closing one school, dropping a range of programs, and retiring twenty school buses.
Since 2008, MCS has lost some fifty positions -- something that School Board Chair Laura Lang said is causing a “domino effect.” If jobs are cut at central office. Lang told the Commissioners, it puts more work on the teacher’s plate.
To meet the budget challenge, the School Board plans to dip into their fund balance for an additional $4 million, closing $9 million of the $12.1 million funding gap. Using half of the $8 million fund balance in the coming year makes some Board members nervous, Lang told the Commissioners, noting that the fund balance will have to be replenished from funds that don’t exist.
This year's $129 FY 2010-2011 million county budget included $26 million in funding for Moore County Schools, which itself has a total budget of $108 million.
During the public comment period of Tuesday's meeting, Judith Borden asked the Commissioners to think about the students, when considering the schools' budget request. “Think about what will come out of that classroom at the end of the year,” Borden urged, arguing that teachers are under a lot of pressure -- including worrying if they will have a job next year. According to Borden, teachers haven't had a raise in the last three years.
The Board of Commissioners will review the Board of Educations request for $3.1 million in additional funding as part of the County's overall budget process, but the County itself is waiting to see if the state will be taking away some of the school construction dollars that normally flow from the state to the County.
Governor Beverly Purdue's proposed budget would deprive counties of those funds, while also asking counties to pay for their own school buses, as well as cover worker’s compensation costs for state-paid public school and community college employees.
If the county loses state school construction funding, it will make it that much more difficult to provide the $3.1 million Moore County Schools need to balance their budget.
NMWD Bonds Extended
The Board of Commissioners unanimously approved during Tuesday's meeting Public Works Director Dennis Brobst's request to extend the $16 million bond referendum for the Northwest Moore Water District [NMWD].
The county is exploring resurrecting the District, which was unable to secure a sufficient number of customers in its service area to be viable, by bringing the Town of Robbins and the Seven Lakes area into the plan. That would give Seven Lakes a new, separate source of water, while making better use of an existing reservoir in Robbins.
Under the language of the 2004 bond referendum, the only water that could be piped into the new District had to come from the Town of Robbins. But, with the closing of Robbins' water plant, that restriction no longer applies, Brobst told The Times.
Brobst said the County is “not talking about any particular project," at this time for the NMWD, but has several options currently on the table.
Pine Forest Still Being Reviewed
The Planning Board will give the Board of Commissioners an update on its assessment of material presented in extensive public hearings on the Pine Forest PUD rezoning request findings at the Board's May 3 meeting, Assistant Planning Director Debra Ensminger told the Commissioners.
During Tuesday night’s public comment period, Mary Jo Morris said she had not “done her homework” when presenting information at the Pine Forest public hearing in opposition to MHK, Inc.'s rezoning request. She urged those in opposition of the rezoning to purchase the land at market value or to be satisfied that MHK, Inc. is not building under current zoning, which would not include the environmental protections afforded by the PUD zoning classification.
Consolidation of Prosecutorial Districts
The Board has asked County Attorney Misty Leland to obtain more information on the General Assembly’s proposed consolidation of prosecutorial districts that threatens to eliminate Moore County District Attorney Maureen Krueger's district.
Krueger presented the Board with the request to keep the DA’s office in Moore County. Under the proposed consolidation, Moore County would move into Prosecutorial District 11 with Johnson, Harnett, and Lee counties in 2013 and ultimately move to District 19B with Montgomery and Randolph counties in 2015.
Copies of the resolution are being sent to Senator Harris Blake and Representatives Jamie Boles and Joe Hackney. Through a letter, Sheriff Lane Carter told the Commissioners he feels that moving the district attorney’s office could cause a delay in criminal court cases and would increase the county's costs for housing inmates.
FCC’s Narrowcasting Mandate Opposed
The Board unanimously approved a resolution penned by County Attorney Misty Leland that would oppose the Federal Communications Commission [FCC] mandate for narrow banding emergency communications -- a requirement that could cost the County $5 million.
The FCC is mandating that all private radio system users -- including those used by state and local public safety systems -- that are operating below 512 megahertz [MHz] convert to 12.5 kilohertz [kHz] narrowband voice channels by January 1, 2013. Moore County currently uses 2 kHz voice channels and would be mandated to convert to the 12.5 kHz.
Chairman Nick Picerno and Commissioner Tim Lea put forward the resolution. Picerno said the County’s current equipment doesn’t really need to be replaced -- and, since he has failed to obtain a meeting with the members of Congress representing Moore County, he is sending a resolution. Copies of the resolution are being sent to Senators Kay Hagan and Richard Burr and to Congressman Howard Coble.
Public Works Ordinance Revision
The Board of Commissioners approved a revised project ordinance for the Pinehurst Elevated Tank, Radio Read Meters, and Old Town and Lake Pinehurst Sewer Rehabilitation projects, which are being funded through a portion of the Limited Obligation Bonds the County issued to pay for the new Public Safety and Detention Center.
The total cost of the project is over $9 million, with the Old Town and Lake Pinehurst Sewer Rehabilitation taking up over $6.6 million of that budget. Public Works Director Brobst said both those projects are ready for bid.
Sandhills Community College
Sandhills Community College’s [SCC] Dr. John Dempsey asked the Board to consider the 250 plus jobs that will need to be filled in the next ninety days in Moore County, particularly in the restaurant industry, when considering budget allocations for the college.
SCC is requesting a little over $4 million from the County. Dempsey reminded the Board that Sandhills is educating citizens and is the “pride of the community.”
Nonprofit Budget Requests
Five non-profit organizations; Moore County Literacy Council, Sandhills Coalition for Human Care, The Art’s Council, Habitat for Humanity, and Friend to Friend asked for budget consideration at the Board of Commissioner’s Tuesday, April 19 regular meeting. Commissioner Tim Lea said the “county is fortunate” to have such services, noting that, for the few dollars invested by the county, a big return is received.
• Literacy Council Executive Director Susan Sherard, asked the Board to consider the twenty-two percent of Moore County residents who can’t fill out a job application; a number that astonished Chairman Picerno. “We [Moore County] are ranked one percent higher than the national average, but the same as the state,” when it comes to literacy rates, said Sherard. Last year, the Literacy Council helped 139 adults reach their learning goals through free volunteer services.
• The Sandhills Coalition’s budget request was presented by Executive Director Barrett Walker, who said over 8,000 people received food packages last year, of which 3,300 were children. With operating costs up another twenty percent from last year, she urged the Board to consider the Coalition’s request to keep them in the upcoming budget.
• Art Council Executive Director Chris Dunn said funding the council is more than just encouraging the arts. The Council serves over 50,000 people and helps to promote tourism, generates revenue, and keeps skilled workers in the area. Dunn said the arts kept him in school, personally, and the arts continue to help with drop out rates in the County.
• Habitat Executive Director Elizabeth Cox said the organization has helped over 192 families since 1988, generating over $105,000 in property taxes. “Ninety cents of every dollar donated goes toward building programs,” said Cox, who asked the Board to consider Moore County citizens who depend on Habitat for Humanity for a home and for work.
• Friend to Friend Executive Director Anne Friesen spoke on behalf of the organization and its willingness to help victims -- 12,000 over 20 years -- of sexual and domestic assault. The County ranks fourth in the state for domestic violence and the organization helps with counseling, a shelter, referral services, court advocacy, community education and a 24 hour help line.
Other Business
Other business at the Board of Commissioner’s Tuesday, April 20 meeting included:
• The Board will consider a request to continue funding at a cost of $542,205, the critical crisis and psychiatric services for Moore County by Sandhills Center for Mental Health, Development Disabilities and Substance Abuse Services. This is not an increase from last year's funding allocations.
• Commissioner Tim Lea’s motion to dissolve a committee formed to plan a county administration facility died without a second. Commissioner Jimmy Melton's follow-on motion to keep the Government Center Committee in place won a four-to-one approval.
• A public hearing for an application to be submitted for the Target Transit Assistance Program [TTAP] by the North Carolina Department of Transportation Public Transportation Division will be held on May 3.
• Public Works Director Dennis Brobst was given a farewell award by the Board of Commissioners as he enters into retirement. Commissioner Larry Caddell presented Brobst with the award and said, “Today is a joyous and sad day,” and “the County can never repay [Brobst],” for all the work he has done in the Public Works Department. Brobst said the County was a great place to work and he thanked the Board for letting him “serve the citizens.”
