Leading The Way
STAFF PHOTO BY SUSAN USHER
Leading the West Brunswick High School Class of '92 across M.H. Rourk Stadium and along the
track following graduation on June 2 are junior marshals (front to back) Emily Gore, Amy Caison,
Dorothy Blackburn, Keith Holden, Sean Hughes, Kristy Poulos and not visible, Hope Varnam.
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS VOTED MONDAY
Raises For Two Departments Slashed
BY ERIC CARLSON
Employees of the Brunswick County Sheriffs and
Register of Deeds' departments lost half their expected 5
percent pay raise Monday when the county commission
ers voted to withhold the pay hikes pending a personnel
study of all county departments.
The proposed county budget had included a 2.5 per
cent across-the-board pay hike for all county employees
and a lump sum payment to the sheriff and the register
of deed that would provide a uniform salary increase of
5 percent in those departments.
In adopting the final budget Monday, the board ap
proved the raise for county employees but not for the
other two departments.
The county commissioners appropriate funds for the
sheriff and register of deeds, but cannot set pay scales
for their departments because they arc independently
elected officials.
After a motion by Chairman Kelly Holden, the board
voted 4-1, with Commissioner Frankie Rabon dissent
ing, to withhold half the money earmarked for salaries in
the sheriffs department and register of deeds budgets.
In putting the raises on hold, the commissioners told
County Manager David Clegg to arrange for a reclassifi
cation study of county positions and salaries to begin as
soon as possible.
The personnel study is expected to take at least 60
days. The board agreed to abide by its salary recommen
dations and to give the sheriffs and register of deeds'
departments the remainder of their salary allocation after
pay adjustments arc made in other county departments.
County Manager David Clegg said Tuesday that he
hopes to contract for the study to begin next month. He
said it would lake at least 60 days to complete. Any
salary adjustments recommended by the study probably
would not be implemented until Jan. 1, he said. The re
maining salary money for the sheriff and register of
deeds would not be made available until then.
"I think if we give it to them right now it wouldn't
be fair to the other departments," Holden said at the
budget meeting.
Clcgg said lhat while the allocations to the two de
partments were based on an across-the-board salary in
crease, the two elected officials are free to give merit
raises or to set pay scales any way they choose. Al ter the
withheld money is disbursed, the sheriff and register of
deeds could increase salaries retroactively.
"The sheriff can give it all to one person or to two
people or he can keep it for himself if he wants to,"
Clcgg said.
The vote to withhold the salary allocation came at
the end of a discussion initiated by Rabon, who asked
the board to consider a 5-percent raise for all county em
ployees. He said that due to increased insurance premi
ums, many employees would see a net decrease in their
take-home pay.
County Personnel Officer Margaret Grissett said
some employees would see a bigger increase in their
paychecks if they chose to take part a flexible spending
account that will be available July 1. Under the set-aside
program, fixed expenses such as medical payments and
day-care bills could be taken out of paychecks before
deductions, thereby reducing taxable income.
Commissioner Gene Pinkerton said that instead of
an across-the-board pay hike, any increase in county
salaries should be based on job performance.
"There are a lot of employees here that could stand
a 50 percent increase, including those deputies,"
Pinkerton said. "I wouldn't do their job for twice the
money. There should be some way to reward people for
doing a better job than others."
Rabon disagreed, saying employee raises should be
based on the assumption lhat they are doing a good job.
Those who aren't should be dismissed, he said.
Although he eventually voted in favor of Holden's
motion, Pinkerton said the sheriffs and register of
deeds' departments should not be "penalized 60 days"
while the personnel study is being done.
Sheriff John Carr Davis said he did not want his de
partment to be included in the study."I wouldn't mind
being part of a study as long as it's done by position and
not personality," Davis told the board Monday.
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Sunset Beach Eyes No Change
In Tax Rate For Next Budget
BY SUSAN USHER
Sunset Bcach Town Council is
proposing no changc in its 16.7-ccnt
lax rate for the coming year and few
changcs in its budget.
At their 7:30 p.m. June 15 meet
ing, council members arc cxpectcd
to put polishing touches on the
SI. 31 million budget and set a date
for a public hearing. It must be
adopted by the start of the new fiscal
year July 1.
The budget is based on a property
valuation of SI 86.8 million, up from
SI 7 1.5 million a year ago, reflecting
recent annexation activity and other
growth. Major revenue sources in
clude approximately 5300,000 in
property tax collections and approxi
mately S250.000 in occupancy tax
revenues. This year the town has re
ceived, through June 3, S230.000
from the lax on visitor accommoda
tions, while it had only budgeted
SI 50,000.
The proposed general fund budget
is roughly S714.000, about S84,0(X)
less than this year; and the water
fund budget, $600,940, up from
S563.000.
"It won't changc much," Mayor
Mason Barber predicted, after the
full council studies it.
Barber and Councilmen Julia
Thomas, Cherri Cheek and Bud
Scrantom met last Thursday night
for a work session on the budget, but
said the full council needed to re
view the document before it went to
public hearing.
As of Tuesday, no date for a sec
ond budget workshop under consid
eration had been announced.
One issue raised in the budget
workshop for consideration by the
council was a request from the
Sunset Bcach Volunteer Fire De
partment for the town to pledge con
tributions for three years to guaran
tee a S25,0(X) loan to finish buying
and equipping a new truck. The
county has provided S45.000 from
its contingency fund and the depart
ment has raised S45.000. However,
it has nothing that can be used as se
curity for a loan.
"I want to see a financial report
before 1 make that kind of commit
ment," said Mrs. Thomas.
The proposed budget includes
S 1 8 1 ,000 set aside to cover the rest of
the sewer system study and other
sewer-related expenses, but Barber
said he doesn't think all of the money
will be needed this coming fiscal
year. Some of it, he postulated, might
be available for other purposes, such
as expansion of the town hall.
"We have outgrown this facility,"
he said, echoing the findings of a
town facility study completed more
than a year ago.
The budget also includes comput
er software and training funds for
the building inspections department,
additional financial software, a
printer, roof repairs and added stor
age for town hall, 2.5 percent cost
of-living raises for all employees,
SI, (XX) for use in bcautification and
landscaping by a new gardening
group, and up to three new tele
phone lines.
One telephone line would serve
the recently bccfcd-up inspection
department, housed at the mainte
nance shed. Another would serve as
an information line during emergen
cies, said Town Administrator Linda
Flucgcl, with messages programmed
to explain situations that could range
from a hurricane to a bridge outage.
The town is also exploring pur
chase of a third line, for use in con
tacting police for non-emergency
reasons after business hours.
Presently such calls arc handled by
the county's emergency operations
center 911 dispatchers, but Ms.
Flucgcl said that cannot continue.
She is checking on alternatives.
such as whether calls can be for
warded to the policc department's
cellular telephone.
An old policc vehicle would be
stripped for use by the town admin
istrator.
"1 need to be out and about
more," said Ms. Flucgel, who has
until now used her personal vehicle
when on town business.
The general fund proposes these
expenditures: governing body,
S5.010; administration, S98.031; le
gal, S6.7 (X); elections, S5(X) for an
expected sewer referendum; public
buildings, SI 5,650; policc,
S234.905; inspections, S55.292;
streets, 589,555, including 10 in
stead of six streetlights; sanitation.
584,676; drainage and watershed,
S3.000; planning and zoning,
S23.322; health. S4.569; economic
development, S14,(XX) in occupancy
tax funds to the South Brunswick
Islands Chamber of Commerce for
travel and tourism promotion; Sun
set Beach Volunteer Fire Depart
ment, S18,681or 1 percent of the tax
valuation; Calabash Volunteer
Emergency Medical Service,
S7,500; cultural and recreation.
SI 3,760, including contributions to
the Symphony Society, Hope
Harbor Home, the Brunswick Ani
mal League and the Brunswick
County Library; and a transfer to
capital improvement of S39.000.
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