The funding for dozens of agencies, bureaus and departments remain uncertain as the Carroll County Board of Commissioners prepares to make decisions on the Fiscal Year 2015 Operating Budget.
Every year at this time, the commissioners meet with the various entities it funds to hear their budget requests for the following year. Representatives from a number of entities presented their budget requests to the commissioners Thursday.
Some of the representatives, including Carroll Community College, asked for additional money, while others, such as the Carroll County Board of Zoning Appeals, asked to be flat-funded. The commissioners will meet with dozens more entities in the upcoming weeks before finally beginning FY15 budget deliberations in mid-April.
Carroll Community College
Fiscal Year 2014 funding: $7.2 million
FY15 funding recommended by county staff: $7.45 million
The Carroll Community College in Westminster asked for more funding this year than it did last year to make up for decreasing enrollment. Alan Schuman, executive vice president of administration for the community college, said the college is asking the board for $7.45 million in FY15, $250,000 more than it asked for in FY14.
Schuman said the county's contribution to the community college keeps tuition rates lower.
Community Media Center
FY14 funding: $565,770
FY15 funding recommended by county staff: $606,960
The Community Media Center has increased the amount of hours it dedicates to getting the word out on government issues and public safety, according to Sherry Taylor, marketing director of the organization. On top of managing videoproduction, Taylor said the media center is also using Twitter, YouTube and Facebook to provide information to the public.
As a result of the additional work, the number of hours staff worked has increased 26 percent, she said.
County staff has recommended increasing the media center's budget $41,190. Marion Ware, executive director of the organization, said she would like additional money so that she can continue to make improvements to the aging production system.
Office of Technology Services
FY14 funding: $3.5 million
FY15 funding recommended by county staff: $3.6 million
Mark Ripper, administrator of the county's Office of Technology Services, stressed the importance of filling in vacant computer programer positions.
Ripper said he has had a lot of trouble filling positions, including one programmer position that has been open since 2008. The reason the vacant positions aren't being filled, he said, is because the county's salary is not competitive to ones in the private sector.
The county regularly loses out to skilled programmers because they are choosing higher paying jobs elsewhere, Ripper said.
Carroll County Board of License Commissioners
FY14 funding: $63,820
FY15 funding recommended by county staff: $65,880
Though he has been turned down by the commissioners for several years, Roland Meerdter, chairman of the board of license commissioners, asked for additional money to pay for a part-time employee.
The part-time employee would help the board of license commissioners, also known as the liquor board, perform liquor license inspections and work to curb underage drinking throughout the county.
Currently, Meerdter said, the liquor board has one full-time liquor license inspector.
"We want to do, at least, a mediocre job," he said.
Board of Zoning Appeals
FY14 funding:$98,310
FY15 funding recommended by county staff: $82,610
Harvey Tegeler, a member of the Carroll County Board of Zoning Appeals, asked the budget to remain flat. The budget includes money for an administrative hearing coordinator, printing and per diem for the board of zoning appeal members.
Maryland Department of Agriculture - Gypsy moth
FY14 funding: $30,000
FY15 funding recommended by county staff: $30,000
While the Maryland Department of Agriculture's Forest Pest Management has not needed to suppress gypsy moths in Carroll County recently, entomologist Tom Lupp asked for $30,000 just in case it needed it.
Lupp said that state performs surveys every year to check the population of gypsy moths, which destroy trees and foliage. The surveys start in the fall and continue through the winter. If there is a gypsy moth population, Lupp said he will need the money to suppress the destructive pest.
If surveys indicate that gypsy moth suppression is not needed, the money allocated for those activities will be returned to the county.
Carroll County Health Department
FY14 funding: $3.1 million
FY15 funding recommended by county staff: $3.2 million
County Health Officer Larry Leitch and his staff focused their presentation on how much work his department does for the county and the benefits it receives because of the work.
Leitch said the health department donates $309,000 worth of staff time to Access Carroll, a nonprofit health-care provider for the county's uninsured and low-income residents. His five staff members have contributed approximately 1,800 hours worth of service. The health department also donates immunizations and flu vaccines to the nonprofit.
Edwin Singer, the environmental health director at the health department, summarized the department's efforts to stay in compliance with regulations from the Maryland Department of the Environment. Singer said the health department has worked with the commissioners to push for better septic, construction and environmental regulations.
"I know it's always a tough pill to swallow for the board of commissioners to have to fund an agency that's enforcing a lot of laws and regulations that are [implemented] at the state level that you guys have no control over," Singer said. "We try to do our best to implement those things in a way that they're least impactful on the citizens of Carroll County."
