by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
In light of the work performed by the Ad Hoc Budget Committee of the City Council’s Finance Committee, Mayor John Peyton recently handed down an Executive Order demanding that department heads submit lean proposed 2008-09 budgets in regards to positions within each department. Through the course of its work, the Ad Hoc Committee — which consisted of Council members Stephen Joost, Jack Webb and Mia Jones with the help of Council Auditor Kirk Sherman and his staff — determined that many department heads have been budgeting lapse positions for years, never filling the positions and using the excess funds for operating expenses.
Joost and Webb on more than one occasion have referred to this as a practice of creating a “slush fund” or a “cushion” for the fiscal year.
At Thursday’s opening budget hearings, the Finance Committee took the Executive Order to another level and voted unanimously to officially recommend that a provision of each proposed budget be an accurate, lean personnel count.
“They (department heads) are not going to be able to transfer money in and out of salaries and benefits to an operating line,” said Sherman. “That’s not going to be allowed anymore.”
Finance member Daniel Davis suggested the committee make a formal motion on the provision.
“I wouldn’t depend on a policy decision,” he said. “I think we should put this into law.”
The approved provision will apply only to the departments within the City’s general fund. That excludes all of the independent agencies such as the Jacksonville Port Authority, the Jacksonville Aviation Authority and others such as JTA and JEA. It also excludes the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office budget. However, Finance Chair Michael Corrigan intends to start informally delving into possible personnel lapses in the JSO budget when individual budget hearings begin next week.
“The sheriff (John Rutherford) will have to discuss his lapse employee money,” said Corrigan.
Over the course of the next few weeks, the Finance Committee will dissect a $972 million general fund budget that includes 8,011 employees. Overall, the entire budget is about $5.33 billion.
“I appreciate the effort,” said Council President Ronnie Fussell before the meeting. “You have a tough task before you, but I am comfortable with this committee. Ask the tough questions again and if you do not get an answer, don’t be afraid to say, ‘Put that below the line’ or ‘No.’ Make sure we are not duplicating services.
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