HomeMy WebLinkAboutC.054.93009_1431IREDELL COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PLANNING SESSION MINUTES
JANUARY 17 1997
The Iredell County Board of Commissioners held an all -day
Planning Session, Friday, January 17, 1997, at the Iredell County
Library, 135 East Water Street, Statesville, NC.
Present were: Chairman Sara K. Haire
Vice Chairman Steve D. Johnson
David A. Boone
Alice T. Fortner
Alice M. Stewart
Staff attendina• Joel Mashburn, County Manager
Susan Blumenstein, Finance Officer
Jean Moore, Clerk to the Board
Don Wall, DSS Director (.u..d.d ...-in ..9 ..t•(
Steve Messick, Library Director (.tt••d.d ..tt.i. •.g...t.)
Jim Vernon, Support Services (.tt.,d.d ..rt.t...g...t.)
Media attending: Audrey Montgomery, Record & Landmark
Nancy Baker, Mooresville Tribune
Chairman Haire called the meeting to order.
BUDGET REVIEW OF 1996-97: The county manager said he was
comfortable with the budget so far. Highlights were:
• Doing better than anticipated in sales tax
• More higher -valued building structures are being built in the
County
• Medicaid reimbursements at health dept. (dental) are favorable
A discussion was held on capital reserve funding for the
various water -sewer and economic development projects.
Commissioner Stewart asked for a "clearer" picture on what has been
expended and what balances are remaining.
Concerning health benefit claims, Mashburn said these were
running over budget by about 13 percent. A budget amendment might
be needed in the next few months. Mashhburn mentioned the employee
rate had not changed in four years.
Commissioner Johnson asked about the modular jail. Mashburn
said the City had given a temporary permit for 18 months, and the
unit was leased for 18 months. When the modular unit is removed,
the staff has determined that 80 parking spaces will be available.
Commissioner Boone asked about ways to prevent the public,
when conducting business at the Hall of Justice, from parking at
Bryant Supply. Mashburn replied that signs had been painted at
Bryant, and that the security guard monitors the area.
WELFARE REFORMS Don Wall, DSS Director, said his department was
waiting on the legislature to make key decisions about what core of
services would be mandated. Wall said welfare reform could work in
the positive or negative for the County. California and New York
have always received more than their fair share. AFDC, the JOBS
Program, and the DAY CARE Program will all be capped into a block
grant called Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF). Wall
mentioned that North Carolina's welfare plan is one of the harshest
in the nation. The current proposal stipulates that a welfare
client has a two-year time limit in some programs. After two
years, the client would be refused assistance for three years. The
federal time clock (some programs) stipulates that if a welfare
recipient is on the rolls for five years he/she is then off
forever. Wall said a problem seen in the reform movement will be
to keep track of where people have lived in the past, etc.