Budget Commission Special Meeting – June 30, 2023
Meeting Details: The Geauga County Budget Commission met in Special Session on Friday, June 30, 2023 at 10:00 am in the Auditor’s Conference Room at 215 Main Street, Chardon, Ohio. This meeting was in person with a virtual option via MS Teams.
Meeting Attendance: Auditor Chuck Walder, Prosecutor Jim Flaiz, and Treasurer Chris Hitchcock.
Staff Attendance: Chief Deputy Auditor Ron Leyde and Deputy Auditors Tammy Most and Kristen Sinatra.
County/School/Township/Village Representatives: Geauga County Board of Developmental Disabilities Fiscal Coordinator Rean Davis (via MS Teams) and ADP Chief Deputy Administrator Frank Antenucci.
Minutes: Minutes from the Special Meeting on 6/20/23 were approved.
Revenue Certification Requests:
The following Revenue Certifications were approved:
OBSERVER NOTE: All Geauga school districts submitted amendments in order to finalize their balances for the 2022-23 fiscal year. The school districts’ new fiscal year begins 7/1/23.
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Kenston Local School District - Amendment #2 - $50,648,827.78 in the general fund, $3,873,329.29 in special revenue funds, $7,408,877.49 in debt service funds, $1,401,177.91 in capital project funds, $1,788,356.47 in enterprise funds, $11,774,960.97 in internal service funds, and $103,785.40 in fiduciary funds for a total of $76,999,315.31.
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Berkshire Local School District - Amendment #7 - $23,780,652.21 in the general fund, $2,552,601.83 in special revenue funds, $1,503,708.97 in debt service funds, $2,996,607.40 in capital project funds, $971,105.85 in enterprise funds, $643,146.01 in internal service funds, and $145,020.32 in fiduciary funds for a total of $32,592,842.59.
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Cardinal Local School District - Amendment #3- $17,449,508.28 in the general fund, $5,712,249.05 in special revenue funds, $1,940,263.35 in debt service funds, $1,620,446.34 in capital project funds, $736,199.90 in enterprise funds, and $10,356.35 in fiduciary funds for a total of $27,469,023.27.
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Chardon Local School District - Amendment #5 - $60,756,483.49 in the general fund, $7,883,981.33 in special revenue funds, $422,512.47 in debt service funds, $2,771,823.21 in capital project funds, $28,851.38 in enterprise funds, $8,776,289.55 in internal service funds, and $217,505.70 in fiduciary funds for a total of $80,857,447.13.
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West Geauga Local School District - Amendment #6 - $51,398,108.66 in the general fund, $9,003,083.97 in special revenue funds, $3,028,820.92 in capital project funds, $1,758,247.30 in enterprise funds, $678,471.82 in internal service funds, and $304,145.69 in fiduciary funds for a total of $66,170,878.36.
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Thompson Township Park District - Amendment #2 - $294,531.17 in the general fund only for a total of $294,531.17.
The Thompson Township Park District general fund total increased by $212,000 due to an endowment.
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Geauga County - Amendment #7 - $46,242,857.46 in the general fund, $129,490,401.53 in special revenue funds, $6,279,092.87 in debt service funds, $1,254,159.50 in special assessment funds, $28,193,204.47 in capital project funds, $18,063,060.25 in enterprise funds, $1,206,807.93 in internal service funds, and $3,757,550.66 in fiduciary funds for a total of $234,487,134.67.
The balance of Fund 2063- MRDD Resident Services- increased by $2 million. Mr. Flaiz asked where this money came from, and Geauga County Board of Developmental Disabilities Fiscal Coordinator Rean Davis (via MS Teams) confirmed it was a transfer from the general fund.
Regular Business:
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Geauga County Certificate Re-signings - Due to the rectification of a software glitch improperly crediting levy money to Jobs and Family Services, Geauga County’s previously approved Amendments #5 and 6 were re-signed. For Amendment #6, the new special revenue funds total decreased slightly to $127,490,401.53 and the overall total also decreased slightly to $232,487,134.67; all other fund amounts are unchanged from those certified on May 15. Similarly for Amendment #5, the new special revenue funds total decreased slightly to $123,349,760.53 and the overall total decreased slightly to $226,977,645.96; all other fund amounts are unchanged from those certified on May 1.
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Kenston Local School District 2023-24 Temporary Appropriations - In their temporary appropriations for the 2023-24 fiscal year, Kenston is over appropriated by $325,000 in Fund #507 - ESSER/CARES (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Funds provided by the CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) Act). The Budget Commissioners hypothesized that this is likely a mistake caused by pulling numbers from the wrong version of a form and noted that Kenston has had an Interim Treasurer working for them on only a part-time basis. They have hired Seth Cales to be their full-time Treasurer, but he is not in place yet. Mr. Flaiz moved that the Budget Commissioners send a letter via email today (6/30/23) to Kenston Superintendent Steven Sayers and Interim Treasurer Ryan Pendleton advising them that Kenston is over appropriated in Fund #507 and recommending that they decrease appropriations in that fund so that they don’t exceed revenue as soon as possible; this motion was passed.
Discussion:
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Geauga Park District (GPD) Reminder Letter Follow-up: Mr. Walder noted that an amendment has been inserted into the State of Ohio Budget making it legal for 1545 park districts to have renewal levies. Mr. Walder and Mr. Flaiz both confirmed that they would have no qualms about certifying GPD’s renewal levy dollars at the budget hearings if in fact the amendment is a part of the final approved budget. Mr. Flaiz observed the amendment is in both the House and Senate budget versions, making it likely to be in the final budget bill once it is reconciled. In light of this, the Budget Commissioners decided not to send a reminder letter to GPD advising them that they need to find a solution to their renewal levies being deemed illegal in Ohio Attorney General Opinion 2022-017. Reviewer Note: At publication, Governor DeWine had not yet signed the budget bill into law.
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Levy Guidelines Distribution to Taxing Districts: Mr. Walder shared with the other Budget Commissioners that he and the Prosecutor’s Office have created a four step guideline for county townships to ensure their levies are in accordance with the language requirements of HB140. He stated that he is nearing completion of a similar guideline for county entities as well, which have different ORC procedures in the levy process. Mr. Walder said that he plans to distribute these guidelines to all relevant entities and post them on the Budget Commission website, which is in the process of being created. OBSERVER NOTE: HB140 is also known as the Ballot Uniformity and Transparency Act and was passed last year. It requires certain specific ballot language regarding total revenue and cost to taxpayers for some types of levies and bond issues.
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2024 Budget Work Sessions: As discussed at their meeting on June 20, the Budget Commissioners formally decided to have a work session on budget submissions with interested entities prior to the Budget Hearings on August 21-22. The work session will be August 7 at 9:00 am, followed by the Budget Commission’s previously scheduled meeting at 10:00 am.
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TIF Questions from Bainbridge Residents: Auditor’s Office staff mentioned that they are getting questions about TIF (Tax Increment Financing) from Bainbridge Township residents and wanted to know how to handle it. However, Mr. Walder said that this is not a Budget Commission matter and that he has already advised Bainbridge Township officials that they need to educate their residents about TIFs. OBSERVER NOTE: Please see the Ohio Department of Development’s website for more information on TIFs.
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Update on Pipeline Delinquencies: Mr. Hitchcock asked Mr. Flaiz for an update on the Prosecutor’s Office attempts to recover funds from the tax delinquencies of miscellaneous pipelines. Mr. Flaiz noted that Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Kristen Rine has been able to negotiate and get a good chunk of the delinquent funds from the bankruptcy proceedings of one of the pipelines, though he couldn’t recall precisely which one beyond knowing it wasn’t Orwell. He indicated that, once the bankruptcy proceedings are finalized, the recovered funds would be more than $100,000 and would be received by the end of the year
Public Comment:
This observer asked: 1) which specific pipeline delinquency was nearing collection via bankruptcy proceedings (Mr. Flaiz was unable to recall which specific one); 2) which specific Kenston Local School District fund was over appropriated (Mr. Walder stated it as their CARES Act fund, and this was later clarified further to be specifically Fund #507 - ESSER/CARES via email correspondence with Auditor’s Office staff); 3) whether or not the work session on August 7 would segue into the already scheduled Budget Commission meeting on that date (the Budget Commissioners stated the work session and already scheduled meeting would be back to back but technically separate meetings with separate MS Teams invitations), and 4) what were the names of all meeting attendees who did not appear on camera (Mr. Walder indicated that Mr. Leyde and Mr. Antenucci were also present).
More Information and Posted Minutes: Available on Auditor website
Next Meeting: July 10, 2023 at 10:00 am in the Auditor’s Conference Room at 215 Main Street, Chardon, Ohio.
Name of Observer: Sarah McGlone
Name of Editor: Anne Ondrey
Name of Reviewer: Shelly Lewis
Submitted 6/30/2023
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