City officials again fight over audit issue

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

Emotions again were running high during a Van Wert City Council Finance Committee meeting held Monday evening to discuss whether a performance audit is needed for the city.

City Auditor Martha Balyeat, who has been the prime proponent of a performance audit, cited two troubling city budget problems she said underline the need for the city to cut costs: the continued use of funds earmarked for street improvements for administrative salaries and the use of .22-percent safety tax funds to pay salaries and benefits in the police and fire departments.

Balyeat, who noted that 11 of the 65 Ohio cities that are approximately the size of Van Wert have had performance audits done, although she added that several of those communities were in fiscal watch status when the audits were done.

Although she admitted that the cost of the audit — as much as $70,000 — was a sticking point with Mayor Don Farmer’s administration, she noted that those communities all found enough savings to pay for the cost of the audit.

“I can’t believe we couldn’t find an additional $70,000 in savings from the outside recommendations of an audit,” Balyeat said, adding that having an audit performed would allow the city to be proactive in its fiscal planning.

Finance Committee Chair Joi Mergy agreed with Balyeat, noting that something needs to be done to address the city’s financial concerns. “I think we have some real concerns,” Mergy said, citing the fact that expenses are exceeding revenues this year, which could also affect the city’s reserve fund.

Local businessman and Van Wert County Hospital trustee Andy Czajkowski also spoke in favor of a performance audit, noting that his own businesses, as well as the hospital, had profited from such audits.

Mayor Farmer countered by saying he had reviewed the performance audits already performed by the Ohio Auditor of State’s office, adding that nearly all of the recommendations in those audits, including having city employees contribute more to their health insurance costs, have already been done in Van Wert.

Since the city’s police and fire departments make up approximately 80 percent of the General Fund, which would be the primary focus of a performance audit, Police Chief Joel Hammond and Fire Chief Jim Steele were also on hand to give their opinions. Neither was in favor of a performance audit, with Chief Steele noting that individual communities’ police and fire departments are unique and are usually excluded from performance audits in the first place, since such audits typically are not set up to assess those departments.

Chief Steele went further, noting that, while he doesn’t oppose some type of performance audit, he questions whether one done by the Auditor of State’s Office would be adequate. “I’m all for it, but I also want someone who can properly evaluate police and fire when the time comes,” he noted.

Chief Hammond added that, with personnel costs comprising nearly all of the police and fire department budgets, cutting personnel would likely be the only recommendation that could be made. He also questioned whether cutting personnel wouldn’t create a serious safety issue for the community.

Both chiefs also noted that they have been good stewards of their resources and have been proactive in their fiscal responsibilities — a statement with which Balyeat agreed, noting that she and the chiefs should be on “the same side” in seeking better ways to operate the city financially.

Chief Steele responded by saying he feels there is already too much “side taking” in the discussion over a performance audit.

One change that Czajkowski said could save taxpayers money would be the centralization of dispatch operations in the county. Currently, the police department and the Van Wert County Sheriff’s Department each have their own dispatch facilities and personnel, while Czajkowski said combining the two would represent a significant cost savings.

The meeting, which again featured some sharp exchanges between performance audit proponents and opponents, will likely continue for at least one more meeting, at 6 p.m. Monday, July 15, with the issue then coming to a vote by City Council members.

Also Monday, the city learned that Walmart is seeking a lower tax valuation for its building in the Towne Center retail development. Walmart is asking that the building’s value, currently listed at approximately $9.4 million, be decreased to approximately $8.5 million for two years and $7.5 million thereafter. The Van Wert County Board of Revision has already agreed to the proposal, with the city and Van Wert City Schools also needing to do so before the value can be lowered.

City Council also approved legislation that would place the issue of extending City Council and Council President terms from two years to four years on the November ballot.