Minutes 04/29/1998 - Laserfiche WebLink

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WEDNESDAY, APRll, 29, 1998 the General Assembly was committed to full funding of the facility, and Mr. Pike stated that this remained uncertain, a "Seize the Day" situation. He stated that enormous progress in this area had been made, but that much remained to be done, and that the Museum would make their case for funding in the 2001-2002 biennium budget and hope to be fully funded. Council then expressed their appreciation for the work of Mr. Pike and his staff, and their continued support for his efforts. Council next heard from the Henry-Martinsville Social Services Department, represented by Ms. Joyce Martin, their Director. Ms. Martin stated that she had no new information for Council regarding her Budget request, but would try to answer their questions with the limited information she had on State funding at this time. Council's questions and discussion focused upon salary increases and staffing levels, and concern was expressed that savings and reductions had been expected in the costs of a combined agency, yet significant cost increases for personnel and operations were being requested. Council Members Teague and Haskell had questions about what level of funding the State would be providing for personnel costs, and what the actual mandated compensation increases for staff were, but answers in these areas were not available. Ms. Martin noted that Social Services staff had fallen behind in compensation over the years, and the coming year's budget reflected an attempt by the State to correct this problem. Council Member Haskell asked if more positions could be eliminated as a result of consolidation of the City and County operations and was told that the consolidation did not achieve such reductions since all work was caseload based and no reduction in caseload had been achieved. She also noted that changes in the Aid For Dependent Children (AFDC) program had resulted in greater workload for staff. Ms. Martin then proceeded to describe a variety of cost cutting measures she had imposed, and noted that the organization had been very conservative in its expenditures. Council Member Haskell then stated that the public, Council and Board of Supervisors had expected to see greater savings as a result of consolidation of operations, as well as improved services. Ms. Martin stated that there was only so much that could be done, given that the department had been understaffed going into the merger. Council Member Dallas asked Ms. Martin how many supervisory