Bainbridge Township Trustees spent a frustrated six hours in meetings Monday, including an executive session, as the Dec. 31 deadline loomed for approving the township’s 2017 temporary appropriations budget.
Townships pass the end-of-the-year spending plans to take care of their financial needs for the first quarter of the ensuing year.
During the lengthy budget discussion, Fiscal Officer Kathleen Staudenbaur recommended taking $10,000 from the audit fund, moving the cemetery fund and finding money from the other departments’ budgets to pay for a township administrator.
The administrator would coordinate the departments, handle agenda items and improve communications with trustees, Staudenbaur told trustees.
“We’ve considered this a number of times, but it’s not an inexpensive position,” Trustee Jeff Markley said. “If it were part time, the administrator could take care of the day-to-day operations of the township and handle the financial obligations professionally, alleviating some of the concerns we have today.”
Benza echoed Markley and asked Staudenbaur if she had any ideas how the township would pay an administrator and supply benefits if the person would be full time.
She pointed out trustees already have shifted many of the fiscal officer’s traditional duties, such as preparation of meeting minutes and meeting agendas, to others.
Benza asked if it was appropriate to spend more money to fund duties a fiscal officer usually handles.
Several months ago, trustees hired former Fiscal Officer Janice Sugarman to prepare a large backlog of meeting minutes after discovering Staudenbaur could not prepare them herself.
An administrative assistant takes notes at trustees meetings, prepares the minutes and prepares the agendas.
Staudenbaur does not attend most meetings.
“The question in front of us is, given the reduced work product of the fiscal officer, is it appropriate to continue funding at the same level?” Benza asked.
As an elected public official, Staudenbaur’s salary is set by law, based on the township’s budget. This year, her salary was $29,585. Benza said next year, it would increase to about $31,000.
Benza proposed Staudenbaur keep a list of duties she performs, keeping track of how much time she spends on each department’s business.
Benza said she requested Staudenbaur prepare a key document — a certificate of estimated resources — for Monday night’s meeting, so trustees could have it as they decided how to vote on the temporary appropriations for the beginning of 2017.
“She didn’t see the email,” Benza said, adding without the document, it would be difficult to pass the budget until the Dec. 26 meeting, much closer to the county’s deadline.
Benza said she notified Staudenbaur in a Dec. 9 email she would need to furnish the certificate before trustees could vote on the budget.
“I was in a webinar all day,” Staudenbaur replied.
Benza said she still should have read her emails and made an effort to supply the certificate.
Staudenbaur promised she would get it to her.
“So, we’re not in the position of approving the temporary appropriations tonight,” Markley said.
“Kathleen, the permanent appropriations need to be submitted to the county auditor by Dec. 31,” added Benza.
Markley said it is unfair to the staff to wait until the Dec. 26 meeting.
“Once again, you have put us in a bind,” he said.
In addition, Markley objected to the amount of funds designated “Other Other” for the various departments. He said it was too vague and he had no way of knowing how roughly $400,000 would be spent.
Under Ohio’s Uniform Accounting Network, townships itemize expenditures in specific categories, but can designate funds as “Other Other” if they do not have an obvious designation, explained Markley. In his opinion, the “Other Other” categories have grown too large.
Markley said he would not vote to pass the budget unless he had a list of specific expenditures under each department.
The trustee said he sent an email to Staudenbaur a week ago, asking for a detailed list of expenditures in the “Other Other” category, and telling her he would not approve the budget without seeing it.
“If you want a detailed (list), I can get it,” Staudenbaur told him.
“I wanted it for tonight,” a visibly angry Markley said.
“If we have to wait till the next meeting, (the fiscal office) only has five days to submit it,” Benza explained.
“I tried to do what you guys wanted,” Staudenbaur said.
“No, you didn’t,” retorted Benza. “We needed you to supply the information so we could properly consider it and make an informed decision.”
“I’m sorry. I’ll need to get back to you,” Staudenbaur told trustees. “I’ll get working on it.”
Trustees decided to pass the appropriations without almost $400,000 in categories marked “Other Other.” They also asked Staudenbaur to supply an itemized list of those expenditures by the Dec. 26 meeting and said they would amend the budget at that time.
“That will only serve part of the problem,” township resident Gil Myers told trustees. “This stuff is going to go on and on.”
“It’s a disaster. It’s sad,” Benza agreed.
Following a lengthy discussion on a long list of purchase orders, invoices and blanket certificates that trustees said they believed were not prepared properly, Myers told trustees he believes the taxpayers are not getting their money’s worth for Staudenbaur’s work.
“It’s a shame and we get no answers. The only thing we get is questions will be answered next meeting and we still won’t get the answers,” he said.
“That’s not true,” Staudenbaur replied. “I was in training all day and didn’t see the emails.”
Myers said the fiscal officer is not doing her job and doesn’t seem to understand anything going on.
“You’re a nice lady, but you’re painting a very bad picture of yourself and of this township,” he said.
“Thank you,” Staudenbaur answered.
Myers urged her to step down to “get out of the limelight.”
“You’re just not doing the work. I think that’s an accurate statement,” he said.
“I do work for the township,” she replied.
“This whole meeting tonight is an example of what’s not getting done,” Myers said. “Promise me that at some point, when you realize that you can’t do this, that you will consider it.”
Staudenbaur said yes, however, when Myers asked her when, she said she could not answer him right now.
“I can’t make the decision until I know all the aspects of it,” she said, adding trustees are nitpicking and she is trying to please them.
“I find that very unfair when you say you have to please us,” Trustee Kristina O’Brien said.
“I can see this situation progressing into a complete disaster for you and for the township,” Myers added.
Staudenbaur said she has four years to learn the job.
Myers said the township won’t survive four years with her leading the fiscal office.
“I’m hard working, I have tenacity and am an honest person,” she added.
“I’m not getting my money’s worth,” Myers repeated.
“Yes, you are. I’m willing to go to jail for you,” Staudenbaur shot back.
“We have a real serious problem here that you may not consider as serious as I do,” Myers said. “It’s now after 11:15 and it’s been a rather unproductive meeting. And the only response from you is you’re gonna try harder. The problem really is, you’re not able to do your job.”
Benza apologized to the public for the many delays and tabled agenda items. She told Staudenbaur to prepare for meetings by the Sunday before each Monday meeting.
“I don’t work on Sundays. That’s the Lord’s Day,” Staudenbaur told trustees.
“You don’t work the rest of the week either,” responded Markley.
The meeting adjourned at 11:25 p.m.