Apparently Mr. Pollitt is unwilling to confer with the County Council regarding details of his proposed County Budget. If anyone out there knows why he won’t disclose this information and discuss the budget with the Council, please send a comment.
DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
Friday, May 21, 2010
WHY WON’T RICK POLLITT MEET WITH THE WICOMICO COUNTY COUNCIL?
Apparently Mr. Pollitt is unwilling to confer with the County Council regarding details of his proposed County Budget. If anyone out there knows why he won’t disclose this information and discuss the budget with the Council, please send a comment.
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29 comments:
Ya know, i just gatta say it. All the voice people and their duped followers got exactly what you wanted. You got your REVENUE cap, not a rate cap, and you got your executive form of government. Hows that Executive form working that has cost the taxpayers over a million a year. I voted no. I would rather have to satisfy the thoughts of 7 people than one. Well voice, I told you so. BTW, where are all the ideas with substance on how the county can cut the fat? Where is it? The only ideas I have heard from Voice at the public hearings are ideas that will end up costing the taxpayers more money. Do me a favor, don't come up with anymore good ideas.
Ricky is so used to having his way with his years in Fruitland with no one with sense enough to oppose him. Now he's afraid to face people that actually want to question him.
Council needs to set a meeting and he needs to attend or turn in his key to the executive bathroom.
Ricky can't stand Stevie Prettyman, and she has embarrassed him BIG TIME by saying his omissions/lack of budget details were intentional.
She's right. History says so.
He doesn't want to face her in public, because she will slap him down.
Pollitt's refusal to meet with Council and to furnish what they are asking for gives the perception of a power play and/or an attempt to get over on Council because he has hidden items in the budget.
1:30pm He is afraid only because he knows the county council members are smarter than him.
He's not obligated to give them any more than he has... Go ahead and call, email or meet with him. He'll share everything he has. But the Council doesn't deserve more than they've gotten. Of course, they can vote the budget down if they want.
When you steal things for so long , in time you think it is OK.
It's not just this idiot , it is the government from obamie to the mexican raking your grass. The mexican is now a part of the government , you gotta know that.
agreed with 2:04 pm, He has something to hide or is sneaking something in for him not to share... It is only common seance... Anyone who never has a thing to hide or never cares what others think, show the goods when asked... The others such as Rick, will not show things when they have something to hide or there being sneaky... He's trying to pull a obama move with the "bring it up last min." trick so no one has time to review it or fixed ways to fix it before it gets voted on...
2:08-
Even if you are right, technically, Pollitt ran on the platform that he would be "Mr. Transparency" and cooperative with the Council. During his 3 plus years in office he has not kept either promise.
Rick you are one heck of a guy. One BIG guy. Grow a set of coconuts and tell the seven dwarfs were to go. I think you have stood silent to long. The council is a power hungry bunch. You now have an election to win. Step up or step down man. People are watching how you handle this situation. Your political career depends on how you take charge of this mutiny. I am disgusted by all of you. What a mess we have now become Salisbury City. Internal issues that Joe has every right to report. Keep up the great work Joe. They need someone watching them
Council needs to Ask for:
1)headcount by Department
2)Total Salaries by Department
3)Get the Percentage of each
4)Take headcount % divide by Salaries %
This information will scream to you where the fat is.
word verification "horses"
Example:
Department Total Salary/Total Headcount
Council 99.13%
Administration 345.01%
Circuit Court 217.88%
States Attorney 251.77%
Information Technology 262.37%
Finance 236.05%
Purchasing 195.80%
Human Resources 153.67%
Planning and Zoning 257.22%
Maintenance 159.47%
Sherriff's Department 226.51%
Emergency Services 175.85%
Detention Center 189.42%
Public Works 260.41%
Health Department 148.85%
Roads 144.10%
Recreation 169.22%
Airport 101.50%
Solid Waste 105.39%
I bet Administration will jump right out at you.
Maybe the council should just vote against the budget if they don't get the information they need.
Ahhhh. The importance of Budget variance analysis......Just what does the Chief Accountant do if the audit is so bad every year and you cannot get detail for the budget??
Tricky Ricky
Response to 1:24
I'm a high ranking Voice member and I was not in favor the Elected County Executive.
I can't speak for all of the other VOICE members - and they were numerous - but I can assure you that I never thought the concept would work to begin with.
To the poster of this item: Guess you can't handle the questions about your "facts"..... do they make you look bad?
Took Transparency Lessons from Queen Louise?
Took Behavior Lessons from Mare Ireton?
Took Aggressiveness Training from Barrie Tilghman?
Dunno, you tell me.
1:24 PM, The revenue cap is working nicely, thank you! I votedfor it and would vote for it again, let the cuts begin!
It's time to step up and make the cuts and get on with dealing with the problems. It is going to be difficult but is is inevitable.
The EXC needs to come clean and the CC needs to do their job. End of Story.
In all due to respect to both the Council and Mr. Pollitt. I have not seen the two parties work together on any issue. I do attend Council meetings and the only thing that is tramsparent is the right of does not know what the left is doing. I fault all involved. They were all elected to protect the county and the good people in it. It has become a sandbox war. The kids have taken their toys and went home.
With the election looming they have settled into mediocrity. All their efforts to look better in the upcoming election. Screw the people I guess. Well what have we the people come to expect. This is the norm with political animals such as these. Image is everything and the facts are somewhere out there.
The public demands its elected officials to look us in the eye and tell the truth no matter how painful it may be. Stand true the platform they were elected from. The actions of this council and Pollitt have left it hard for me to trust a word they say. Ed Bakers back door politicing and he being the county attorney is highly unethical.
The court of public opinion is harsh. Perception is not reality. In this case the facts are the facts. The system of County Exec. and Council is not working. The people are being let down by those we palced in positions of trust.
The majority of which we would have never known if Mr. Albero did not report it. Again the only thing transparent here is the fact our elected local goverment is failing us.
The only way to win back the public is with the truth however harsh it may be. Stand for what your platform stated when running for office. It is not that complicated.
We need poeple willing to fight for what they believe in. This twelth hour grandstanding by some has left me more skeptical. They have learned the system well and know that media face time in months prior to the election has saved their butts in the past. They know who they are. The last three and half years your hear nothing from them. Then low and behold they are everywhere in the last quarter of their term.
I think the good people of this county have had enough. It is obvious across the country that people are sick of the incumbant. The school of which these politicians have come to live by is no longer tolerated by the people.
Joe is is time for sweeping change. The people need to remove as many of these career politicians as possible. Elect common folks with the integrity and courage to do the right thing.
The people can trust and respect one those qualities. It is easier to swallow the crap if you know the facts and trust the person presenting them.
There is approximately four months to the primary. We the people need to watch closely the actions orf our elected officials in the next months. They will do and say anything to convince the people they have done the right thing. We need to examine the record and make an educated vote.
Joe msm will not give us the facts. I hope and trust you will pursue the issues here with the same drive you had exsposing Mare Tilghman. I thank you for your efforts. God help us if we put them all back in office. We get what we deserve if we do.
The Wicomican
I bet Rick wishes he never left Fruitland. Rick is keeping quiet because he doesn't know what to do with this budget mess. But, that's politics and that's what he signed on for.
VOICE, why don't you go out and fix the revenue cap and change it to a tax cap. I'm tired of getting furloughed.
From a business perspective, hopefully Cannon runs for Executive.
11:53 AM, I heard that, but the truth is many will be unemployed in the coming weeks. I would hope you're not one of them.
11:53 tired of getting furloughed. well why not join the folks in the private sector. We get a 10% pay cut and still have to show up to work. no extra days off I mean "furloughed days"
history teaches Pollitt way or no way. can't stand confrontation.time to clean house.B.L.P.
Under Wicomico County's new form of Government (chosen by a majority of County registered voters that bothered to vote), the budget is the County Executive's budget. Not the County Council's budget. The County Council has limited powers with the budget.
From Section 705 of the Wicomico County Charter:
"The Annual Budget and Appropriation Bill shall be adopted by the Council not later than June 1 or such date as may be set by resolution pursuant to Section 707 of this Charter, but not later than June 15th. If the Council fails to adopt the
Annual Budget and Appropriation Bill by June 15th, the proposed current expense budget as submitted by the County Executive shall stand adopted, and funds for the expenditures proposed in the current expense budget shall stand
appropriated as fully and to the same extent as if favorable action thereon had been taken by the Council."
Also from Section 705 of the Wicomico County Charter:
"After the public hearing, the Council may decrease or delete any items in the budget except those required by the laws of this state or of this county, and except any provisions for debt service on obligations then outstanding or for
estimated cash deficits. The Council shall have no power to change the form of the budget as submitted by the County Executive, or to alter the revenue estimates except to correct mathematical errors, or to add any items to the budget or to increase any expenditure recommended by the County Executive for current expense or capital purposes."
If you read the entire Section 705 of the Wicomico County Charter it appears as Rick Pollitt has provided the County Council with what is required for the Budget presentation. It is now up to the County Council to either decrease or delete expenditures by line item; or approve the budget.
The County Council can't decrease or delete revenues. I would quess that if the Wicomico County Council were to decrease or delete expenditures, that revenue otherwise assigned to those expenditures would just simply be appropriated to another expense line item.
The County Executive doesn't need to be at the County Council meeting. The County Council needs to either approve the budget as submitted, or send the budget back to the County Executive with decreased or deleted expenditures.
But no matter, on June 15, Rick Pollitt's budget becomes law.
3:38, yes, but it is a fact that pay scales in the private sector are much larger than that of the public sector (at least local level) so in essence, a 10% cut in the private sector still has you making quite a bit more than public.
7:58, how about that executive form of govt that you voted for? no comment on that huh? You are really too stupid to realize the difference in the revenue cap versus the rate cap, so I am not going to attempt to explain it.
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