Carroll commissioners shuffle county budget schedule, mull long-term effect of coronavirus on local economy

Carroll County government never fully recovered from the recession, its budget director says, and now it is almost certain the coronavirus will deal a new, long-term blow to the local economy.

Sitting one seat removed from one another Thursday, the Board of County Commissioners reorganized its schedule in the coming weeks so the budget planning process for fiscal year 2021 can take place with minimal risk to the public and county employees.

There are three cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by coronavirus, in Carroll County as of March 20, according to the county health department.

“This is having and will have an impact on the economy. That is going to have an impact on our revenues," said Ted Zaleski, director of management and budget.

Income tax will be affected as people lose their jobs, he said. There could be less development, homes may go unsold, and the county’s investments will be less prosperous, Zaleski said, naming a few of his concerns.

Budget office staff was scheduled to present the recommended 2021 budget and 2022-2026 operating plan Tuesday, but will now do so on March 26 during the Board of Commissioners meeting, which starts at 9 a.m. Commissioner Stephen Wantz, R-District 1, suggested it would be better to have one meeting that week instead of two, to reduce the likelihood of spreading COVID-19.

The budget agency hearings planned for March 26, 31, and April 2 are canceled. Instead, there will budget work sessions March 31 and April 2 starting at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., during which commissioners will review the recommended budget with staff and deliberate changes.

In complying with Gov. Larry Hogan’s latest orders to limit gatherings to 10 people, certain county staff will be allowed in the meeting room with commissioners as they debate the budget, while others will watch the live stream video. Wantz said there are typically 15 to 20 staff and commissioners in the room during budget work sessions.

Agencies funded by the county — such as public works, nonprofits, the state’s attorney’s office — normally have the option to send written comment to the budget office and appear at hearings in person to advocate for their budget needs, if they differ from what is in the recommended budget. Instead, the commissioners decided to eliminate in-person appearances by agencies and will rely on the written comments for this budget.

Commissioner Eric Bouchat, R-District 4, asked Zaleski if there was an emergency plan followed in a previous crisis that could be applied now.

“No," Zaleski said. “A lot of the things we did during the last recession are not available to us this time.”

Back then, the county cut about 100 positions that worked under the commissioners. They’ve added some back since, Zaleski said, but nowhere close to 100. When these positions were cut, he said the mindset at the time was to get through the recession and then things would return to normal.

“That’s never happened,” Zaleski said. “We have been struggling with what we hoped was a one- or two-year problem for a decade now.”

Also during the recession, the county backed off certain capital projects, but now, there are few capital projects to cut, Zaleski said.

Additionally, the county is hurt by the Federal Reserve’s recent decision to drop interest rates to near zero during the COVID-19 outbreak, according to Zaleski. He wrote in an email the change will equate to about $1 million in lost revenue for the county.

“This is a loss of revenue. And this one is pretty much certain," Zaleski said at the meeting. "This isn’t speculative. In the short term, we know there’s going to be money we were counting on that’s not going to come in.”

Although investments are not a “huge revenue” for the county, because the budget is so tight, he said even this makes an impact.

Once Zaleski set the stage for discussion, the commissioners debated whether to continue the budget process as normal. Typically, the commissioners adopt a budget each year, along with a five-year operating plan, according to county administrator Roberta Windham.

Commissioner Richard Weaver, R-District 2, floated the idea of adopting the 2020 budget for 2021 and making small changes such as raises for county employees. He noted the commissioners can reopen the budget and change it at a future public meeting after adoption.

Commissioner Ed Rothstein, R-District 5, and Dennis Frazier, R-District 3, voiced opinions in favor of continuing the budget process as usual, though with social distancing measures in place.

“I understand we could reopen a budget, and we could do that, but you know my concern is if we do this very macro level we’re going to miss opportunities and we would be neglectful," Rothstein said.

One thing the commissioners can control during these uncertain times, Frazier said, is the county budget.

“We could never have predicted this. We could never have predicted the recession to last as long as it has,” Frazier said. "Previous boards of commissioners still went through the budget process and still got things done.”

Wantz and Bouchat agreed with Rothstein and Frazier.

Wantz spoke to a need for efficiency, suggesting the county office may be the next building ordered to close by the governor.

“We may have to do this from our homes," Wantz said.

Upcoming budget dates

Once the proposed budget is agreed upon by a majority of the commissioners, a proposed budget news conference will be held, which is scheduled for April 28, according to a county news release.

At this time, but subject to change, community meetings to review and explain the proposed budget are currently scheduled at Carroll County Public Library branches at 7 p.m. on these dates:

The community meetings are followed by a budget public hearing, scheduled for 7 p.m. May 12 at the Carroll Community College, Scott Center Auditorium.

Additional budget work sessions may be held by the commissioners to make any modifications to the proposed budget based on the information received during the budget public hearing. These work sessions are tentatively scheduled for May 19 and 21.

The 2021 budget adoption is planned for May 26.

Members of the public are strongly recommended by the county to view any commissioner proceedings via live stream on the county website. Anyone wishing to attend a commissioners meeting or budget work session must make an appointment first by calling 410-386-2043.

These sessions will be televised on Channel 24 and streamed live on the county meeting portal.