The scheduled Finance Committee meeting for Monday at 6 p.m. to discuss a pay raise for city employees in fiscal year 2014-15 has been canceled.
“There really isn’t a need to have a Finance Committee meeting Monday night so I canceled it,” said Alderman Ken Smith.
Smith says he scheduled the meeting with the intent of getting a jump on budget discussions for fiscal year 2014-15 with fellow committee members Mike Neal and Ben Newman, but those plans have changed.
“Mike has changed how he is going to handle the budget this year,” said Smith. “He is encouraging all the committee chairs to follow the same procedure the Safety Committee is going to do.”
Last year, Finance Committee members met, reviewed the proposed departmental budgets, and made adjustments. Then, the Finance Committee presented the budgets in joint committee meetings to prospective committees for approval (Parks and Recreation Department budget to Parks and Recreation Committee, etc.). Once approved, the overall budget was sent to the full board for its consideration.
The Safety Committee, of which Neal is chairman, oversees McMinnville Police Department and McMinnville Fire Department. Neal says he wants to oversee his department’s proposed budgets rather than allowing the Finance Committee to do it.
“Last year, everything was shot through Finance first,” said Neal. “I sent Ken a note telling him the Safety Committee will not be going by that procedure this year. Other committees can do what they want. If they want to give Finance Committee full authority over their budget, they can. I have decided that’s not the route I’m taking with my committee.”
Prior to last year, the proposal departmental budgets were reviewed by their prospective committees for changes and sent to Finance for financial consideration. From Finance, the budgets were sent to the full board.
Neal, who is a member of the Finance Committee, says he is switching back to the way things used to be done because last year gave the Finance Committee “supreme authority” over the city’s budget and he doesn’t feel one committee should have so much control.
“I don’t believe Finance is the supreme authority,” Neal said. “I’ve talked this over with legal counsel and no one committee can overrule another committee. The whole board can, but no supreme committee. My interpretation of the Finance Committee is to find funding, compile the budget and tell us how much that budget’s going to cost. Then, the board decides if they are going to fund the budget at that amount. That’s how I feel it should be done and that’s how I’m going to do it.”
Cancellation of the meeting does not mean cancellation of raises for city employees next year. As it once was, a percentage increase across the board will be factored into the budget for full board consideration. The amount is unknown at this time.