The Duncan Banner

Local News

August 26, 2012

County employees approved for raises

The Duncan Banner

DUNCAN — Several Stephens County employees will be receiving a 5 percent pay raise — the first in four years — while the Stephens County Sheriff’s Department received a budget cut of $200,000 or 36 percent to its 2012-13 budget.

Board of Stephens County Commissioners met with the Excise-Equalization Board in a special meeting Friday to discuss the proposed 2012-13 Stephens County budget. By the end of the meeting, both boards agreed and approved the requests for all departments that were submitted, except for the Sheriff’s Department.

Last year, the Sheriff’s Department received a budget of $550,000, said board members. With the $200,000 budget cut, this brings the department’s total budget to $350,000.

The boards said the Sheriff’s Department has done well in distributing its cash flow.

The only department that won’t receive a raise is the Stephens County Election Board, and that’s because the Oklahoma State Election Board disapproved giving raises.

The board members said other departments are using cash funds before general funds.

“We don’t want those cash funds to be completely depleted, but we do want them to use them,” Todd Churchman, District 2 commissioner and commissioners board chairman, said. “All of our offices are in good shape.

“I’m looking at the bottom line because that’s what we’re responsible for. I’m not a fan of handing out more than we are taking in.”

But when it come to excess funds, they said that money might better serve as a pay raise for county employees instead of being put into the sheriff’s cash fund.

“It would restrict what the sheriff gets for general fund, but it would be a break-even for him,” Churchman said. “He won’t have to use his cash funds if his spending stays the same as last year.

“He’s grown his office quite a bit. I don’t see how we can fund that growth out of the general fund. I’m not against growing if you have the money,” Churchman said.

Other departments, including the Country Treasurer Janice Graham’s office, are using different fund accounts to use fewer general funds. The commissioners said this will help the county have money in case a department needs financial help. If the money were supplied to the Sheriff’s Department and put into its cash funds, it could only be used for the Sheriff’s Department from that point on, Churchman noted. “We’re not picking on the sheriff,” Dee Bowen, District 3 commissioner, said. “It could have been any office.”

Undersheriff John Smith attended the meeting because Sheriff Wayne McKinney was unable to attend. The undersheriff said the department has plans to purchase a couple of vehicles and wants to hire more people to help with the workload. He said that money would have to come out of other funds the department has.

“We know revenue’s tight,” Smith said. “I’m a little disappointed.”

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