County employees still have no answer on raises

On Tuesday, Bourbon County Commissioners continued to wrestle with whether the 2018 budget can accommodate wage increases they had planned to implement.

The original proposal is for an additional $1.75 per hour more for sheriff’s and correctional staff and 75 per hour for all other hourly employees. On Tuesday, commissioners gave County Counselor Justin Meeks authority to meet with Terry Sercer, CPA with Diehl, Banwart, Bolton of Fort Scott, to determine if the budget can handle $1.175 per hour for sheriff’s deputies, $1.60 for correctional employees and 75 cents for all other hourly employees.

Sercer assists the county with the annual budget.

Commissioners told the Tribune they are trying to decide how to distribute those raises. The thought is to spread the raises out over the next five years.

Southeast Kansas Regional Jail Administrator Major Bobby Reed, Sheriff Bill martin and SEKRCC Captain Alvin Metcalf Jr. met with the commissioners to discuss the 2018 budget.

According to the unofficial minutes from the meeting, Reed reminded commissioners he had questioned the final approved numbers for the 2018 budget on Aug. 29. At that time, commissioners told Reed all salaries are in the sheriff’s budget because the sheriff is responsible for both departments.

Reed said his concerned is the budget won’t support additional meal expenses for inmates or the wage increase. He estimated meals will cost $48,000 and the wage increase to cost $75,000.

Reed had budgeted for 65 inmates in 2018, more than the current population which this week has been in the lower to mid 30s. The county hopes to house inmates from the state or other counties in the new 74-bed law enforcement center after it opens.

In August, Reed and Martin said they are always under budget and have returned unused funds at the end of the year.

On Tuesday, Commission Chairman Lynne Oharah said there is $55,000 in the sheriff’s 2018 budget, which could be used for the correctional center and the sheriff’s office budget is more than the sheriff’s 2018 request, the unofficial minutes state.

Meeks estimated the 2018 budget could be $46,000 in the hole if commissioners adopt the proposed $1.75 and 75-cents per hour wage increases. He has estimated benefits, not including health insurance.

Commissioners have agreed to look at giving sheriff’s hourly employees $1.75, correctional employees $1.60 per hour and all other county employees 75 cents, according to the unofficial minutes.

Meeks estimated those rates would leave the budget with a $38,000 deficit, but that could be covered by $40,000 from a line item created to cover a federally proposed overtime rule, which did not go into effect in 2016 as had been anticipated, according to the unofficial minutes.

Meeks said the correctional center should have unused funds at the end of the 2017 fiscal year, but that money will have to be used for overages in the sheriff’s office. According to the minutes, Meeks said he is concerned with the amount of overtime.