Paulding Budget

[vslade]

First post for me.

But this thread took a wierd turn.

I cannot understand how anyone can justify take home cares for ANY county employee. (other than one on actual emergency call that must respond to issues at night quickly)

It does not matter what they get paid. Things change as the hundreds of people out of work, out of their homes and out of hope can attest to. Gas prices are through the roof and the county still thinks it is a good idea to have how many employees take home a vehicle?

There is absolutely no reason why an entire department like the Marshals should have take home cars. How can this not be a problem to all tax payers? I am so surprised.

How many employees have take home cars or trucks home? How many jobs could it have saved if they were parked? How much money would be saved?

Seem like common sense questions to me.

 

 

Welcome to Paulding,com. You know alot of people don't have common sense anymore. They think as

long as they have a degree, that is it. No, if you don't have common sense to go along with it.

[Myprayers77]

So when will we know if the millage rate will go up?

[Really?!]

Thanks BMR and yep common sense is not very common.

[mach4]

County employees don't experience the "real world"? What about furlough days/holidays with no pay? What about no pay raises in 4+/years? What about insurance costs going up, but your salary is cut due to furlough days? What about an entire department being cut (storm water division)?

 

In the past, yeah, you could argue a "government job was 'cushy'". Not any more.

 

If you see a County employee dropping off their kid at school in a County vehicle, take a picture, write down a tag/vehicle # and report them. But don't make such a broad statement and paint EVERY County employee into this picture. The average County employee and his/her family is suffering just as much as those in the "real world".

 

You can run on up to the commissioners and ask to see the pictures, and complaints that were SUPPOSEDLY written down last year, the year before, 3 years prior to that if you wish. Let me know what dicipline was taken when you get back....of course I can save you a trip and tell you NOTHING was or HAS been done. Its your gas expense running up there...not mine. Go for it.

 

Bottom line....1 car per department, going home,, and ONLY when on call.

 

Pubby, you aren't getting tax cuts....................your property has been devalued, what you have is worth less, they can't tax something that doesn't exist. This is happening all over the USA, not just in Paulding County. Yes, taxes have indeed increased, your property has lost value.

 

Sorry, only folks that need to respond to emergencies (on call)..........should be allowed to take county vehicles home. It's not just the gas and additional repairs but our Fleet Insurance dropped dramatically when we quit letting employees bring company vehicles home.

 

The perks that have gone to most everyone in every field have been cut. Company vehicles are an expense most are sending by the way side. More and more companies are going with "vehicle allowances and phone allowances".

 

 

 

They have no competition (private sector does). They dont have to provide good customer service or be nice, because they know the "customer" can't go anywhere else (private sector does). They have access to vision and dental insurance through work (most private sector doesn't). They have a retirement (most private sector doesn't). They don't have to struggle all day everyday to keep their boss AND their customer happy (private sector does). You think furlough days are bad??? Try a straight PAY CUT. You get paid less, but STILL HAVE TO GO TO WORK. And its a lot easier to get rid of furlough days than it is to get a pay raise.

 

SO true.

 

 

Whaattt?? They don't have to provide good customer service/be nice? Do you know how many people, when they don't get their way, walk up the 3-floors to the County Commissioners office and biotch? Have you priced out what a County employee's vision/dental insurance actually covers when they go for a service? Do you know how long they have to be there to get their "full" retirement and do you know how many have gotten laid-off when they were *this close* to getting their retirement benefits? And where do you get off thinking they don't have to keep their bosses (their direct supervisor, that person's supervisor and 4-County Commissioners and a Chair) AND customers happy? And no, it's not a lot easier to get rid of furlough days than pay raises b/c of people like you with this mind-set.

 

Folks may go up to the 3rd floor and biotch, but there is NEVER anything done. at least not to the public eye. In the private sector, if employees treated customers with the ssslllloooowww, I dont give a rats ass if you are EVER waited on, attitude, the employee would have been out the door and replaced. If not replaced, position phased out.!

 

Have you ever priced out how much the PRIVATE sectors insurance, dental, vision, and what it actually covers? Dont get me started there.! EVERYTHING has gone up for everyone! Not just the poor, poor, wittle county worker!

 

PARK THE CARS!

 

Another thing not mentioned is many of those with take home vehicles respond directly to job sites when working. In many cases there is no savings, the distance from the employees home to the job is a wash when compared to the distance from the office to the job. Also, instead of the employee being at the job site at the start of their day with an assigned vehicle they have to go to the office where you now pay them to drive to the site. Same thing at the end of the day, it can easily take an hour of productive time away.

 

You end up paying $15 or more in salary to avoid a gallon of gas.

 

An hour of productive time? Oh no no... At the end of the day, we drive the company vehicle BACK to where it belongs, pick up our own PERSONAL car and go home.....NOT drive the company car home.

 

So out of the several hundred county employees, approx. 60 are lower paid than others or so highly trained that they must be given a car to stay in their job? Are positions that require specialized training not protected by an agreement that the employee will stay one the job at least long enough to repay the training given? If not that would make sense. Enter into a contract or sorts to stay or pay back for the training you recieved.

 

Like I said in a position where an employee would be called out in an emergency it makes sense. Maybe even one person designated per Department that is the emergency contact.

 

All employees have suffered the changes such as furloughs, rising medical insurance premiums. On top of that these "other" employees suffer high gas prices to get to and from work.

 

It may be that a select few respond directly to the job site. I happen to know that is not the case in the Marshal's Department. If it is the case in other departments it could not possibly be every day. Are there measures taken to ensure that preplanning is done to decide who will need to go directly to a job site and on that day they take home a vehicle? Or are a select few given special treatment?

 

My question at this point is who is manning the store and making sure that this is done fairly? This along with the high salaries of a select few are disturbing to me as the commissioners talk about how the "money is just not there". It seems to be "there" to cover these very high salaries and it seems to be "there" to pacify employees that would otherwise walk away to another awaiting job that will give them a car to drive home. But it does not seem to be "there" to keep our animal shelter open more than 4 hours a day, not "there" to keep long time employees from being laid off, not "there" to prevent the reduction of services and threats of park closings.

 

An old question comes to mind that I believe was brought up during the last election. In these hard times, with a full time paid Chairman, why do we have such a high paid County Administrator? All Departments have Department heads, that in theory answer to the BOC. In times of smaller Govt. i.e. less money coming in does the middle man process need to just stay the same?

 

I am sure it is this way in many counties, but we were promised transparency and fairness. Are we getting those things?

 

Very good post!

 

Lets not forget, not these commissioners, but the last batch voted themselves a HEFTY HEFTY salary increase! So the current commissioners are getting paid VERY VERY well.

 

This meeting will tell me (dont know bout y'all) what they are made of, and how hard ball they can play WITH the issues. There are cuts that can be made, if they arent afraid of doing so.

[Cathyhelms]

Well, it appears the IBA is gonna get a lot of $ cut from the Sheriff's budget.

 

Waiting for more info before I really get p*ssed.

 

My link

[LisaKW@bellsouth.net]

It's simply amazing and disheartening to see the amount of venom spewed and the amount of contempt shown towards the "average" County employee...

[surepip]

Virtually all of the county employees I know work damn hard for not great pay. Just who all are these overpaid folks ?

 

On the car issue, for several departments, you would indeed be cutting off your nose in spite of your face.

 

The Sheriff's department maintains a substantially higher profile on the streets by the deputies driving their cars home and to their part time jobs they have to work at in order to make a livable wage. LEO in uniform in patrol cars visible on the streets are a crime deterrent just by being there.

 

And it also puts them 'on-duty" when they are not being paid for being "on-duty".

 

I questioned the commissioners on cutting back the assessment department and going to an every 3rd year re-assesment instead of annually. But, because the previous administration had re-assesed every year when the values were increasing, the BOC has kept the department doing re-assessments even though the values are going down, lowering the overall county income from property taxes. Fair indeed, but not very efficient fiscally.

 

Looking at the big picture, I feel the BOC has done an admirable job 3 years running for reducing expenses and cutting the budget while paying off the enormous bills and committments they inherited from that previous administration.

[Tahoe]

Virtually all of the county employees I know work damn hard for not great pay. Just who all are these overpaid folks ?

 

On the car issue, for several departments, you would indeed be cutting off your nose in spite of your face.

 

The Sheriff's department maintains a substantially higher profile on the streets by the deputies driving their cars home and to their part time jobs they have to work at in order to make a livable wage. LEO in uniform in patrol cars visible on the streets are a crime deterrent just by being there.

 

And it also puts them 'on-duty" when they are not being paid for being "on-duty".

 

I questioned the commissioners on cutting back the assessment department and going to an every 3rd year re-assesment instead of annually. But, because the previous administration had re-assesed every year when the values were increasing, the BOC has kept the department doing re-assessments even though the values are going down, lowering the overall county income from property taxes. Fair indeed, but not very efficient fiscally.

 

Looking at the big picture, I feel the BOC has done an admirable job 3 years running for reducing expenses and cutting the budget while paying off the enormous bills and committments they inherited from that previous administration.

 

 

Very nice post....

[ProudAmerican]

WOW, with all of your ranting and raving one would think that you were turned down in the past for the head cage cleaner position at the animal shelter.

 

Keep applying. Maybe you will get that job one day!!!

 

 

 

 

 

You can run on up to the commissioners and ask to see the pictures, and complaints that were SUPPOSEDLY written down last year, the year before, 3 years prior to that if you wish. Let me know what dicipline was taken when you get back....of course I can save you a trip and tell you NOTHING was or HAS been done. Its your gas expense running up there...not mine. Go for it.

 

Bottom line....1 car per department, going home,, and ONLY when on call.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SO true.

 

 

 

 

Folks may go up to the 3rd floor and biotch, but there is NEVER anything done. at least not to the public eye. In the private sector, if employees treated customers with the ssslllloooowww, I dont give a rats ass if you are EVER waited on, attitude, the employee would have been out the door and replaced. If not replaced, position phased out.!

 

Have you ever priced out how much the PRIVATE sectors insurance, dental, vision, and what it actually covers? Dont get me started there.! EVERYTHING has gone up for everyone! Not just the poor, poor, wittle county worker!

 

PARK THE CARS!

 

 

 

An hour of productive time? Oh no no... At the end of the day, we drive the company vehicle BACK to where it belongs, pick up our own PERSONAL car and go home.....NOT drive the company car home.

 

 

 

Very good post!

 

Lets not forget, not these commissioners, but the last batch voted themselves a HEFTY HEFTY salary increase! So the current commissioners are getting paid VERY VERY well.

 

This meeting will tell me (dont know bout y'all) what they are made of, and how hard ball they can play WITH the issues. There are cuts that can be made, if they arent afraid of doing so.

[Deepgreenlighting]

Well, it appears the IBA is gonna get a lot of $ cut from the Sheriff's budget.

 

Waiting for more info before I really get p*ssed.

 

My link

 

Gary Gulledge came in over 200,000 dollars under last years budget. This was by his own doing that he didnt spend and didnt need to spend that money... Gary being a GOOD STEWARD of our money.... This is a blessing that he did things under budget. He is a good man and took care responsibly of our tax dollars. I applaud him for doing this and knowing that this years budget would be less. Amazing honestly.

[surepip]

Lets not forget, not these commissioners, but the last batch voted themselves a HEFTY HEFTY salary increase! So the current commissioners are getting paid VERY VERY well.

 

This meeting will tell me (dont know bout y'all) what they are made of, and how hard ball they can play WITH the issues. There are cuts that can be made, if they arent afraid of doing so.

By no means am I defending the "last batch of commissioners", but they did not vote themselves any salary increase. By State law only the legislature can do that, which indeed Rep Glenn Richardson did propose a bill to give Mr Shearin, [hence now Austin] more than a 50% salary increase to the low $90,000 range, something like $93k and change.

 

And, Mr Shearin's administrative assistant, Beverley Cochran was knocking down $60,000 a year plus benefits.

 

The post commissioners do get a salary as well, but if worked out per hour it is pretty low pay for the amount of time they have to spend.

 

As much as I would like to see the budget trimmed further, I have no problem with the deputies, and other specified county employees still driving their vehicles home if that was part of their salary package.

[winston1972]

Look at the type of cars they are driving. Do they really need a 25-30K Explorer, when a Focus would do? If they need a vehicle fine, but explain to me the necessity of vehicle that costs twice as much and uses more gas.

[surepip]

Look at the type of cars they are driving. Do they really need a 25-30K Explorer, when a Focus would do? If they need a vehicle fine, but explain to me the necessity of vehicle that costs twice as much and uses more gas.

 

By all means, and I agree.

 

The Sheriff's Deputies are going to have to stay with their Crown Vics, but I would think the tax assessors, etc., could and should be driving very, very economical cars if for no other reason than to set the standards. The Parks and Rec, PDOT, etc., will need to stay in their pick ups.

[Cathyhelms]

Gary Gulledge came in over 200,000 dollars under last years budget. This was by his own doing that he didnt spend and didnt need to spend that money... Gary being a GOOD STEWARD of our money.... This is a blessing that he did things under budget. He is a good man and took care responsibly of our tax dollars. I applaud him for doing this and knowing that this years budget would be less. Amazing honestly.

 

I agreee, you couldn't ask for a better guy than our Sheriff, so what do they do..........cut even more from his budget...................are you kidding me??

 

THANK YOU SHERIFF GULLEDGE!!

[Deepgreenlighting]

I agreee, you couldn't ask for a better guy than our Sheriff, so what do they do..........cut even more from his budget...................are you kidding me??

 

THANK YOU SHERIFF GULLEDGE!!

 

I think they asked him to self cut some things. He cut some positions that are open and they wont fill. I am not 100% sure but i think the new budget for him maybe in the same range as he actually spent and used this year. Maybe a little less but i think its close. He is a good man for sure.

[Cathyhelms]

I think they asked him to self cut some things. He cut some positions that are open and they wont fill. I am not 100% sure but i think the new budget for him maybe in the same range as he actually spent and used this year. Maybe a little less but i think its close. He is a good man for sure.

 

Did you look at my link?? It looks like they cut over $500,000.00 from his budget.

[NewsJunky]

Did you look at my link?? It looks like they cut over $500,000.00 from his budget.

I hope not. I know he does a great job of watching expenses and he has done all he could to cut costs. Good man and a good Sheriff.