NAWILIWILI — Kaua‘i County Council members needed only one of the two scheduled sessions this week to tweak the mayor’s proposed budget. Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. on Friday sent to council members his final version of the budget for the
NAWILIWILI — Kaua‘i County Council members needed only one of the two scheduled sessions this week to tweak the mayor’s proposed budget.
Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. on Friday sent to council members his final version of the budget for the fiscal year starting July 1. After analyzing the thick document over the weekend, council members voted on several changes Monday.
The council’s version came in $24,266 higher than Carvalho’s proposal of $147.02 million.
Public testimony last week showed concern that a recycling coordinator position had been downgraded to a specialist, a step above entry level. The council reinstated the coordinator position, adding an extra $19,000 to fund the vacant position.
Furloughs will stand, as Carvalho had suggested in his original proposed budget released March 15 and on his final version last week. But the mayor had said certain employee groups needed consideration for an agreement other than a two-day per month furlough.
Those positions include police radio dispatchers, police public safety workers, water safety officers, bus drivers and solid waste collectors.
Councilman Jay Furfaro said he would like to have a budget proviso that makes a “comprehensive assessment” of the impact of the furloughs six months after they are implemented.
“This is rather new for us,” he said, explaining why he proposed revisiting the furloughs in six months. “We might have an oversight; we might be falling behind in some of our work load.”
Council members also reinstated an almost $20,000 chunk previously pulled from the YWCA’s Family Violence Shelter and Sexual Assault Treatment Program.
Despite saying those programs should have been funded by the state government, council members said the YWCA programs are important and should not be left unfunded.
The shelter will get a total of $37,887 and the Sexual Assault Treatment program will receive a total of $55,669 if the council’s version is approved.
The Kaua‘i Planning & Action Alliance, a nonprofit which acts as a neutral convener and facilitator in county developments, got $9,000 reinstated in its funding, bumping it back to $37,000.
Dr. Becky Rhoades, executive director of Kaua‘i Humane Society, said in a previous meeting if the mayor took out $32,000 out of the nonprofit’s budget of $655,000, as planned, the dead-animal pick-up service would probably cease.
In such case, county workers would probably pick them up and take them to the landfills. Councilmembers voted to reinstate the funds.
The Head Start summer program, which provides schooling for children of low-income families, will benefit from a $7,000 boost on top of its $18,000 budget, thanks to council members.
State Auditor Marion Higa told council members last week that the County Auditor’s Office needs at least another auditor, in addition to the their two current staff.
Council members voted unanimously to add $65,000 to that office’s budget, bumping it to $535,000, and allowing it to hire another auditor.
Council members added $20,000 to the budget, to hire consultant services to provide assistance in updating the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance.
The largest addition to the budget was a $500,000 fund to be used mostly in furniture rebuilding during the restoration of the Historic County Building.
Councilman Tim Bynum said the expense was originally projected for the following fiscal year in 2012. But the furniture is mostly built in, including wooden panels, which will have to be installed now, while the building is being restored.
The $500,000 price tag may seem high, but Bynum said other bids came in just under $1 million.
Council members gave Kaua‘i Economic Development Board a $20,000 boost to help with the economic plan’s implementation, increasing the Office of Economic Development’s budget to $553,887.
Council members give themselves pay cut
The extra expenses added by council members into the budget will come at a price even for council members. They voted to take a $150 reduction on their auto/extra-expense allowance of $500. This will add an extra savings of $12,600 to the budget.
Council members are already taking a 9.1 percent pay cut to match what county workers will lose in a two-day per month furlough. Each one will have a pay cut of over $7,300, and Chair Kaipo Asing will lose almost $8,000.
The county’s General Fund has $728,592 set aside for project contingency. Council members took $565,000 out of the project contingency fund to supplement the budget.
After the fund transfer, the project contingency fund is at $163,592. But Budget and Finance Committee Chair Daryl Kaneshiro said project expenditures have been quite accurate lately, so it should be safe to go that low.
The Kaua‘i Police Department was not spared by council members, who took a $100,000 bite out of the $2 million police overtime fund.
Residents will have to wait a little longer to catch the Kaua‘i Bus on Sundays. Council members nixed a proposal to give the Transportation Agency $230,152 to extend bus services an extra day.
Furfaro said when the council reviews the sustainability plan, a proposed 6 cents tax per gallon of gas may be suggested to fund Sunday service for the bus.
The county’s Washington, D.C.-based lobbyist lost its $100,000 funding. Bynum and Councilwoman Lani Kawahara voted to keep the position, but the rest of the council members — while recognizing the importance of a lobbyist in the nation’s capital — said they are willing to work extra hard to find and fight for federal grants.
Bynum offered a one-day per month furlough option, but it didn’t pass. The councilman said furloughs are ineffective ways to save money, and that he believed the decision to furlough was politically motivated, set forth by the threat of the state taking away counties’ share of the Transient Accommodation Tax.
The county originally planned to close down the Wailua Golf Course during furlough days. But Finance Director Wally Rezentes Jr. said the furlough days will be staggered, allowing the golf course to stay open everyday.
The council will meet again on May 19, when the Budget and Finance Committee will vote on the amended budget. Should FY11 pass committee, the following week, on May 26 it will reach full council.
After the FY11 makes it out of full council with a majority of votes, Carvalho can approve it, veto it, or let it become law without his signature. If the mayor vetoes the budget, it will bounce back to council, where it will need a supermajority to pass.
Visit www.thegardenisland.com for video of the budget review hearings, or www.kauai.gov for more information.
