By JOHN SWEENEY
Published: June 13, 2011
First reading of Florence’s 2011-12 budget passed by a 4-3 margin Monday as council members disagreed on how to proceed with one-time fund balance expenditures.
Council members Steve Powers, Ed Robinson and Teresa Myers Ervin voted against first reading after city manager David Williams presented them with suggestions on how to spend between $379,000 and $514,000 on expenditures from the fund balance.
The council members disagreed with Mayor Stephen J. Wukela’s proposal to separate the one-time expenditures from the budget and vote on those items separately at a later date but get first reading of the budget in as the June 30 deadline approaches.
The council must have first reading complete by that date to have a budget in place at the start of the new fiscal year July 1.
Powers, who led the opposition to holding first reading, said council should vote on the budget as a whole rather than separate the fund balance expenditures for projects like funding for the Florence Family YMCA, city animal shelter/control, the replacement of playground equipment in Timrod Park and Community Block Development Grants (CBDG).
Robinson, who requested that funds be considered for community development projects, said the decision of Wukela and council members Octavia Williams-Blake, Glynn Willis and Buddy Brand to separate funding items in question from the budget hurt children, especially minorities, by addressing issues affecting them.
“These programs for these kids are just Band-aids,” Robinson said of other items suggested for the expenditures. “It’s just really not doing what it takes to take care of the kids that we have responsibility for.”
Ervin said given the importance of CDBG funding, the issue should be addressed with the rest of the budget.
Further debate on the budget and the on- time expenditures will take place at second reading and adoption of the budget, which scheduled to take place at the beginning of next week.
During his presentation, Williams continued to advocate maintaining a fund balance of at least 30 percent, an issue discussed at budget work sessions in May.
Williams said the fund balance would benefit the city in the event of natural disasters, impress creditors and should represent roughly 30 percent of the previous year’s budgeted general fund expenditures.
In doing so, Williams said, the city would ensure emergency funds are available to be used in the case of a natural disaster or financial crisis.