WEST POINT — For the second time in three days, the West Point Board of Selectmen put off budget cuts aimed at balancing the city”s books.
Instead, they chose to spend the majority of Thursday”s meeting listening to Ward 5 Selectman Jasper Pittman question Chief Administrative Officer Randy Jones and Board Attorney Orlando Richmond about policy and procedure.
Thursday”s special meeting was called following Tuesday”s regularly scheduled board meeting, at which the board requested an itemized claims docket for the Water and Light Department as well as written reports on potential budget cuts. The claims docket was approved with minimal debate, but the budget cuts were put off again per Ward 3 Selectman Charles Collins” suggestion the city”s budget and finance committee be involved in determining the best course of action.
Pittman, Ward 4 Selectman Keith McBrayer and Mayor Scott Ross each sit on the finance committee.
The only action taken Thursday by the board toward cutting costs was a vote to cancel its meter-reading contract with North Mississippi Utility Service and move three city employees from Public Works to the Water and Light Department to serve as meter readers. Collins suggested the move, predicting it could save the city nearly $20,000 by moving the salaries from the general fund.
The city of West Point pays 72 cents per electric meter read and 88 cents per water meter for 4,071 electric customers and 5,714 water customers every month — an annual cost of more than $95,500.
The board balked at a motion by McBrayer, who was acting on Ross” advice, that an attendance incentive be suspended for the year at a savings of $43,000.
The decision to cut or keep the incentive is due by Saturday or it will be awarded in the city”s next pay cycle. City employees get an additional one-twelfth of their salary for every month they do not miss a day; the accrued amount is added to the employees” Dec. 15 paycheck.
Further proposals to cut costs included asking city employees to pay 100 percent of their health insurance costs — roughly $400 each month — and halting distribution of city trash bags to residents at a yearly savings of $75,000.
The city currently pays 100 percent of each full-time employee”s health insurance premium.
Additionally, twice a year, the city distributes trash bags to West Point residents, according the city”s Public Works Department, which handles the city”s sanitation services.
“It could solve almost the entire budget problem. But we”re talking about taking that money out of people”s checks,” Ross reminded the board of cutting health benefits.
Ross warned the board that making no cuts could result in rescinding recent pay raises or furloughs for city employees. He emphasized the budget could not be balanced without costing employees money or benefits.
“There”s not enough lights to turn off or fees to raise. It”s not going to amount to anything that”s going to even approach the deficit,” said Ross.
West Point finished the past fiscal year with a deficit of $700,000.
Rules of order
Pittman began his line of questioning following the decision to table budget cuts, asking Richmond questions aimed at explaining why Ross would not entertain his motion Tuesday in executive session to demote acting electric department head and metering superintendent Shasta Plunkett to line crew. Plunkett took over the electric department after Paul Young retired in September.
Citing Robert”s Rules of Order, Richmond explained unscheduled agenda items should be introduced at the beginning of public meetings and added as an amendment.
“Once the agenda is fixed, anything not on the agenda is not recognized,” said Richmond.
Pittman asked Richmond if the board had the authority to remove a department head. Richmond declined to comment publicly because Plunkett was never officially installed as the head of the electric department.
Pay raises in question
The discussion then turned to pay raises for Water and Light employees Plunkett recommended and Jones approved without notifying the board.
Pressed for an explanation by board members, Jones explained pay raises are rarely ever brought to the attention of the board and have been a regular part of the claims docket during this board”s administration.
“What about the 20-30 other pay adjustments you don”t seem to care about?” Jones asked.
The argument continued for several minutes after Pittman moved all pay raises be brought to the board for approval. When the issue finally came to a vote, Ward 1 Selectman Rod Bobo abstained and McBrayer voted no, but the motion carried.
An executive session followed in which Water and Light office manager Jan Wray, who was suspended indefinitely in November, was disciplined for allowing her husband, Bill Wray, to operate a city vehicle as the Wray”s took a trip out of town on city business.
The board voted not to terminate Wray, but to have her return to work immediately and place her on six months probation. She will receive no back pay for the time she was suspended.
In other business the board:
- Voted to advertise positions for waste water treatment engineers after Jones recommended hiring Tim Estes and Jason Freeman.
- Approved establishing a line item account for trust fund for playground equipment at Eastside Elementary.
- Accepted three acres of wooded land near the Artex plant on West Main Street donated by the McClure family, former owners of McClure Furniture in West Point.
Jason Browne was previously a reporter for The Dispatch.
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