ISLAND COUNTY COMMISSIONERS - MINUTES OF MEETING
SPECIAL SESSION – NOVEMBER 24, 1999
The
Board of Island County Commissioners met in Special Session on November 24, 1999, beginning at 3:30
p.m. The purpose of the Special Session
was to consider the date and time for scheduling of a public hearing on an
ordinance which would implement an
additional 2% hotel-motel tax, and to
discuss additional budget considerations.
The Special Session was held in the Courthouse Annex, Basement Hearing Room, Coupeville, Wa. Commissioners
Shelton, McDowell and Thorn were present.
PUBLIC HEARING SCHEDULED: ORDINANCE #C-154-99 ESTABLISHING AND LEVYING
AN ADDITIONAL TWO PERCENT SPECIAL EXCISE TAX ON LODGING FOR TOURISM PROMOTION
By
unanimous motion, the Board scheduled a
public hearing for December 13, 1999 at 3:30 p.m. for the purpose of considering
proposed Ordinance #C-154-99 establishing and levying an additional two percent special excise tax on lodging
for tourism promotion.
[NOTE: Due to requirements for
legal notice and the fact that legal ad did not make the deadline for 10 days’
prior notice in the newspaper, the
Board by unanimous motion at a December 1, 1999 regular staff session, rescheduled the public hearing from December 13, 1999 @ 3:30 p.m. to December
20, 1999 at 1:30 p.m.. ]
Board Action:
§
Road levy set at: 1.42%
§
Additional Staff
Requested: approved hiring one new
person from the Road Fund, a right-of-way utility inspector [GMA]
§
Community
Development: Bring forward a discussion
with the Director early next year as a management subject the matter of
improving the permitting process.
Request
for a new Cris+ system for the Auditor’s Office, a system some 20+ other
counties use and are very pleased with.
Board Action: The Board agreed that the proposal come
forward with joint approval of the Auditor and Central Services Director
with a plan for the installation and coordination between the two departments
so there is a compatible interface with
the existing County system.
A
$65,000 expenditure to be off-set by $65,000 in revenue. Clarification: the reason the Board previously approved a new court commissioner
position and allocated $65,000 on the expenditure side of the budget was
because the District Court Judge said he could offset the expense with $65,000
worth of new revenue, i.e. make up the
extra expense by covering cases the Court may not have otherwise gotten to.
Allocated
already an additional transfer from
Current Expense to Public Health Pooling in the amount of $26,000 to ensure not
having to increase fees in environmental
health. Margaret Rosenkranz,
Budget Director, reviewed the latest figures with the Board, now showing a deficit of $108,562.00.
The
total Current Expense Reserve is now $325,000, including the use of the $26,000
being transferred to Public Health Pooling.
The funding needed in Public Health Pooling either has to come out of
the reserve or cut services.
The
695 initiative to the Legislature has been filed, which would roll back any
taxes or fee increases imposed [back to July]. Chairman Shelton has heard some Legislators say that in
terms of local government the Governor
will attempt to restore criminal justice and public health monies. He thought
there was a general recognition throughout the State that public health is
important. He thought it had to be
clear that any Current Expense monies to Public Health Pooling at this time is not indicative of anything on a
continuing basis.
Chairman
Shelton proposed using the Current Reserve an additional $100,000 for Public
Health Pooling. Commissioner McDowell agreed as long as it was made very
clear the $100,000 was not automatically on the table next year as a
contribution to Public Health Pooling.
Commissioner Thorn suggested another way would be that
the Health Director address planning as if that additional $88,000 were
included, the appropriation not made now, the Board reserve judgment until later in the year, if the Legislature did
not come through in the meantime.
Board
Agreement: Make up the $88,000 a one-time borrow from the
County’s Current Expense reserve, but if at the beginning of the biennium July 1st there is some
additional State money, the $88,000 from Current Expense Fund will not be added
on top of the State money.
Meeting adjourned 4:20 p.m. Next regular meeting to be held on December 6, 1999, beginning at
9:30 a.m.
BOARD
OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
ISLAND
COUNTY, WASHINGTON
___________________________
Mike
Shelton, Chairman
___________________________
Wm.
L. McDowell, Member
ATTEST:
___________________________
___________________________ William F. Thorn,
Member
Margaret
Rosenkranz, Clerk of the Board