Dayton finds out some funds in red but still gives raises
Number crunch
OBSERVER Photo by Andrew David Kuczkowski: Dayton Town Supervisor Angie Mardino-Miller took the role on Jan. 1, 2018, and entered into a unique financial dilemma, where the town-wide and part-town (or village) fund balances were imbalanced that one was negative and the other was well-positive.
DAYTON — The financial numbers brought questions to the town board, employees and residents as some fund balances were in the negative, while others were in the black in May’s town board meeting. Meanwhile on the day the town board presented the third-party audit’s findings, two forgotten raises were applied to town highway employees, another worker was given a financial promotion and the superintendent admitted to mistakenly pay former workers a higher overtime rate.
HEARING
THE
NUMBERS
The Dayton Town Board hired Laura L. Napoli, CPA of Bahgat & Laurito-Bahgat to conduct an audit on the finances. Napoli is now presenting the information as she was held up until after the tax season.
OBSERVER Photo by Andrew David Kuczkowski: Dayton Superintendent of Highways Brian Taber gestures toward his 2018 budget, stating that there was a $3,000 difference between his numbers and the one he is being shown.
She stated that there were two fund balances in the negative for the town. The major fund balances, Napoli explained, were the general fund and the highway. Due to Dayton having a village (South Dayton), those fund balances are split into two (making four total). Thus, there is a Town-wide General Fund and a Part-Town (village) General Fund and a Town-wide Highway Fund and a Part-Town Highway Fund.
In the town-wide general, the 2017 year ended with a negative $17,924 or $17,959. The difference is still not determined, but since it’s only $25, Napoli stated, it’s not a major issue. The town-wide highway is also negative by $85,136.
In total, those two fund balances are negative $103,060 — taking the lower number on the town-wide general.
However, Napoli explained that the part-town funds are more in the positive than the town-wide’s were negative. The part-town general is at $99,524 and the part-town highway is positive $282,054. After all is said, the town of Dayton, for these four balances, is positive $278,518 (again, that’s dependent on what the negative town-wide general actually is).
The problem is adjusting the fund balances to get all four to the positive.
“One of the things that you can’t do, according to the state, is that you can’t just move funds from a part-town to a town-wide,” Napoli said. “So, you can’t just transfer money. … What we can do is do some adjusting on how you do the budget. One of the things is, as long as there is no tax to the part-town, we can actually allocate some of the sales tax to the town-wide.”
Napoli said that it will take a couple of years to get those balances back to the positive. She added an emphasis that the goal is not to fluctuate taxes.
HOW
THEY
GOT
IN
THE
RED
In 2016, the Town-wide General Fund Balance was actually worse, Napoli informed the taxpayers. That balance used to be negative $43,000 (where it’s now negative $17,924 or $17,959). The other issues the town board and town supervisor have been facing was the lack of awareness from what’s inside the bank accounts they possess.
“When the budget was done for 2018, money from the fund balance was taken from the general fund town-wide,” Napoli said. “Well you didn’t have a fund balance to take from. Based on the fact that it has been negative for the past few years, I would have thought that would have been known and you really can’t take money you don’t have.”
Also, the board approved a purchase of a truck and possibly more (as the details were limited in the first look) in 2016. The money, however, wasn’t available in the balance it was purchased out of.
“It seems like there was some kind of equipment purchased in 2016 (of $169,514) that wasn’t funded with debt, so it was funded basically from a loan by the highway part-town because you had monies there,” Napoli said. “… That looks like what happened.”
RAISES
IN
THE
RED
Dayton Town Supervisor Angie Mardino-Miller took her seat on Jan. 1, 2018 and replaced Smith. Mardino-Miller stated that one highway department employee was supposed to make $14 an hour as of January 2017 and then get a raise for 2018. Also, another employee was supposed to be jumped up to $14 an hour.
These were already scheduled raises that the board didn’t enact at a previous meeting, though the minutes allegedly showed they were supposed to be given. The board gave a motion to give them said pay boosts, with the town clerk informing the OBSERVER that it includes back pay from Jan. 1, 2018.
Deputy Superintendent Jason Johnson, a Dayton worker for five years, was also present and asked about his wage. He is stated to be working at $16 an hour and was making 25 cents more for being in the deputy role.
“Well, since we are making these wages right, he didn’t get anything,” Mardino-Miller said. “I put a motion on the table to give him a dollar an hour (extra).”
After that got approved, Town Highway Superintendent Brain Taber shared a laugh with his employees at the meeting.
“You guys are going to work really hard for me,” he said.
Mardino-Miller stressed after the meeting that keeping those town highway employees there and happy will be beneficial to Dayton. The trainings are costly, she stated, and these raises will incentivize stability.
HIGHWAY
ROBBERY?
There was confusion about the overall highway funds. Taber said that his highway line is not where he believes it is at, adding that it’s around $3,000 off.
He worried it would negatively impact the budget. Napoli explained that these wages may or may not make the 2018 budget negative as highway employees’ budget line are dependent on how much overtime is accrued.
“If you don’t have money budgeted, it will just be more money that is borrowed. Then we will have to find out in the new budget,” she said.
After the raises got approved, Taber showed confusion towards the pay. The town of Dayton gives an incentive pay to those who opt out of the town’s insurance of 75 cents an hour. Taber was adding that pay to the base pay to his employees’ $14.25.
“Fifteen dollars an hour,” Taber said of their final pay. “… When I send the pay to you, it’s going to be $15 an hour.”
Napoli, however, stated that there is a difference between base pay and the insurance benefit plus base pay.
“I don’t need to get into base pay or nothing,” Taber replied and added, “You do, I don’t.”
Napoli informed Taber that the 75 cents per hour addition to those who opt out of the insurance is called a fringe benefit, thus separate from base pay. The difference will make an impact on those who get overtime. For an employee that worked a full year (2,080 hours), got overtime pay for the fringe benefits of 75 cents an hour and worked a hypothetical 250 hours of overtime (4.81 hours overtime a week), that employee would be wrongfully paid $1,350 for that year.
That hypothetical is for one year and one employee.
When the information clicked for Taber, he said, “So the guys that have retired recently have made out like bandits.”
FIXING
THE
FUND
BALANCES
The town board will work with Napoli to accommodate the 2019 budget. The town board is struggling, according to Mardino-Miller, to get more information as former supervisor, Smith, is not giving details to the town’s expenses and revenues.
“The truth is the former supervisor won’t show us the backup system of the finances,” Mardino-Miller said. “… In writing, he said he wasn’t going to giving it because he has two other businesses on there.”
The current supervisor stated that the state comptroller has been called and notified. Mardino-Miller said that there needs to be some changes to the coming years.
“Expenditures are going to have to be adjusted,” Mardino-Miller said.
The budget discussions begin in September and the next town board meeting is June 13 at the town hall. It begins at 7 p.m.
-
- OBSERVER Photo by Andrew David Kuczkowski: Dayton Town Supervisor Angie Mardino-Miller took the role on Jan. 1, 2018, and entered into a unique financial dilemma, where the town-wide and part-town (or village) fund balances were imbalanced that one was negative and the other was well-positive.
-
- OBSERVER Photo by Andrew David Kuczkowski: Dayton Superintendent of Highways Brian Taber gestures toward his 2018 budget, stating that there was a $3,000 difference between his numbers and the one he is being shown.
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