Finance panel moves freeze on hiring forward

Quorum Court committee to consider proposal on Tuesday

BENTONVILLE — Benton County’s Finance Committee on Tuesday night voted to forward a hiring freeze proposal to the Committee of the Whole.

The proposal wasn’t on the agenda but came up as justices of the peace began to sort through the impact covid-19 will have on the county budget.

The Committee of the Whole on Tuesday will decide whether to send the item to the Quorum Court for adoption.

Exceptions to the hiring freeze would be the Sheriff’s Office, the jail and central communications. Elected officials could come before the Quorum Court and ask for an exception if they needed to replace an employee. The vote was 8-6.

The county has 34 open positions, said Brenda Guenther, county comptroller.

The committee also got its first glance at proposed budget cuts. Elected officials last month were asked to look at 5% cuts.

Proposed cuts from the general and road funds tallied $3.47 million, Guenther said.

The cuts will be discussed more in depth at next month’s Finance Committee meeting as part of a possible budget amendment, Finance Committee Chairman Tom Allen said.

There are $2 million in proposed cuts to the Road Department budget, including $1 million for capital equipment, Guenther said. The cuts amount to 15%.

Among the proposed equipment cuts are two graders, a compactor and two tractors with side-boom mowers, County Judge Barry Moehring said.

Other proposed cost-saving measures in the Road Department include temporary employment services ($50,000), culverts ($150,000), fuel ($80,000) and asphalt ($720,000), Moehring said.

The cuts would reduce county road projects from 24 to 14 and will cut three box culvert projects, he said.

“The Road Department will be very focused on road maintenance and upkeep — road builds, repairs, potholes, drainage, culverts, brush — as well as the bridge program,” Moehring said.

Proposed cuts at the Sheriff’s Office came to $483,500, Guenther said. The county budget is $58.5 million.

The county has analyzed best-case to worst-case possibilities of revenue losses, Guenther said.

“Based upon those scenarios, the revenue impact to the county’s budget is estimated at a range between 3.2% at the best case, 7.5% mid-level, and possibly as high as 13.7% at

the worst case,” she wrote in an email to the justices of the peace in mid-April.

Allen said at last month’s Quorum Court meeting he thought the impact would fall in the mid-level range.

The $3.47 million in proposed cuts is 5.8% of the beginning 2020 budget, Guenther said. The county would still face a shortfall of

$130,692, according to county documents.

Guenther showed “revenue adjustment assumptions” with best, mid-level and worst scenarios for sales tax, circuit and district court fines and forfeitures, jail fees, highway revenue turnback and the county four-lane half cent sales tax.

Revenue adjustment assumptions

for general turnback and property taxes also were presented.

Mike Jones may be reached by email at mjones@nwadg.com.