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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04211980SPECIAL WORKSHOP MEETING - APRIL 21, 1980 DISCUSSION OF THE CREATING OF A FINANCE DEPARTMENT MEETING WAS CALLED TO ORDER BY MAYOR PAT FLOOD, JR. AT 7:00 P.M. PRESENT: COUNCILMEN EVERETT T. GASS AND FRANK J. OBERBECK, COUNCILWOMAN DOROTHY W. MC KINLEY, MAYOR PAT FLOOD, JR., AND CITY ATTORNEY DANIEL M. KILBRIDE, JR. ABSENT: VICE MAYOR LEWIS GRAY. MAYOR FLOOD STATED THAT THERE WOULD BE A FIRST READING OF THE ORDINANCE ON APRIL 23. THIS MEETING WAS JUST TO DISCUSS WHETHER TO SPLIT THE CITY CLERK'S OFFICE AND ESTABLISH A DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE. JUST TO QUELL THE RUMORS, MAYOR FLOOD ADDED THAT THERE ARE NO PERSONALITIES INVOLVED. WE ARE NOT TRYING TO DO AWAY WITH THE CITY CLERK AND HER SALARY WILL NOT BE CUT. THIS WHOLE QUESTION WAS BROUGHT UP AT THIS TIME BECAUSE AT THE TIME MR. LANCASTER WAS EMPLOYED AS THE BOOKKEEPER, IT WAS AGREED THAT IN SIX MONTHS' TIME A DECISION WOULD BE MADE AS TO WHETHER OR NOT THE BOOKKEEPER SHOULD BE APPOINTED CiTY TREASURER. COUNCILMAN OBERBECK ASKED HOW THE CASH FLOW IS HANDLED AT THE PRESENT TIME - WHO HANDLES THE BANKING? WHO DRAWS THE PAY CHECKS? HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE iNVOLVED? WHO STUFFS THE ENVELOPES? MAYOR FLOOD RE- PLIED THAT ABOUT 4 PEOPLE ARE PRESENTLY INVOLVED. COUNCILMAN OBERBECK ALSO WANTED TO KNOW IF MR. LANCASTER HAD HANDLED ALL THE BOOKS FOR THE PAST SIX MONTHS, THE INSURANCE POLICIES, TRANSACTIONS WITH DIFFERENT BANKS, AND MAYOR FLOOD STATED THAT HE HAD WORKED UNER THE DIRECTION OF HIMSELF AND THE CITY CLERK. MRS. PHELAN STATED THAT MR. LANCASTER HAS NOT BEEN HANDLING ALL THE MONEY. HE HAS ONLY RECENT- LY STARTED TO CARRY THE DEPOSITS BACK AND FORTH TO THE BANK. HE DOES NOT HAVE ANY POWER TO SIGN CHECKS, TO WITHDRAW MONEY OR DO ANYTHING. THAT IS DONE BY THE MAYOR, THE VICE MAYOR, AND THE CITY CLERK. SECTION OF WORK. IN RESPONSE, MRS. PHEF::WN MADE THB FOL~WfNG STATEMENT: %1 "I AM NOT AGAINST THE CHANGE IF THIS iS~HE INTE~PRETATI~ THAT HAS BEEN GIVEN OUT. I THINK, IF AND WHEN THE CITY GROWS LARGE ENOUGH, I YZ E TO CRF E A ANCE DEPARTMENT AND A CITY TREASURER, ASIDE FROM ANY OTHER OFFICE, OR A FINANCE~DIRECTO~--WHO WOULD HAVE CONTROL OF IT, BUT I AM STILL THOROUGHLY AND TOTALLY AGAINST PUTTING ALL THE FUNDS, ALL THE MONEY, ALL THE REPERCUSSIONS OF HANDLING MONEY, ALL BANK ACCOUNTS AND EVERYTHING INTO THE HAND~N~IVIDUAL. I HAVE NEVER DONE iT AND IT HAS NEVER BEEN DONE WITH THE CITY BEFORE. WE HAVE ALWAYS HAD~TWO PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN THE TRANS- ACTION OF MONEY. WHEN I WAS COLONEL JORDAN'S ASSiStAnT, I DID THE ACTUAL BOOKKEEPING AND HE DID THE ACTUAL, HANDLING OF THE MONEY. SINCE I HAVE BEEN CI~·CLERK__ I HAVE ACTUALLY DONE ALL THE BANKING, BUT WE VE ALWAYS HAD A FULL-TiME BOOKKEEPER. ~ ~EE~ £-TIIS THOROUGHLY UNETHICAL TO HAVE JUST ONE PERSON. THIS·ORDINANCE SPELLS OUT JUST ABOUT EVERY S%I2~3wSE Z~-TAIL - SIGNING CHECKS, HANDLING MONEY, BONDS, ANY- THING AT ALL PERTAINING TO FINANCE - ONE INDIVIDUAL. THAT'S MY ONLY CASE. I AM NOT AGAINST ANY CHANGES BEING MADE,~_~UT PLRaEE~V~gIDER~ING~ TH2kN_J2~E~RSON_2tAND~-THE MONEY. IT CAN LEAD MAYOR FLOOD REMAR~ ~HAT THkRE WOU~D gT~L%BE ~NANCE 30MMI~TE~ ~D%AS R~YOR HE IS IN CHARGE OF EACH CHECK. HE ~T ~S EVERY~P~IT~W'N~,,~,/ROBABSY__ ~OUL~T__ ~ TH~ANGE IS MADE. HE FEELS THAT WITH OUR GROWTH PATTERN IT WOULD MAKE FOR BETTER EFFICIENCY, AND THERE SHOULD BE NO PROBLEM. HE ADDED THAT MRS. PHELAN HAS DONE A GREAT JOB, BUT IT IS GETTING TO BE TOO BiG FOR ONE PERSON TO HANDLE. COUNCILMAN OBERBECK THOUGHT THAT WITH THE~MONEY SITUATION THE WAY IT IS TODAY, THE CITY TREASURER WOULD BE ABLE TO KEEP IN TOUCH WITH THE MOVEMENT OF FUNDS AND ASKED IF MR. LANCASTER, WHO IS THE POTEN- TIAL PERSON FOR THE JOB, WOULD LIKE TO SAY HOW HE FEELS HE COULD BENEFIT THE CITY. MAYOR FLOOD FELT THIS WAS PUTTING MR. LANCASTER ON THE SPOT AND COUNCILMAN OBERBECK WITHDREW THE QUESTION. MR. EUGENE CRAGG STATED THAT HE HAD WORKED WITH MRS. PHELAN FOR NINE YEARS, FOUR OF THEM AS MAYOR, AND ALWAYS FELT THAT SHE DID AN EXCELLENT JOB. MRS. PHELAN RAN THE WHOLE THING AND ALL HE DID WAS SIGN CHECKS. HE NEVER SAW THE DEPOSITS AND ASSUMEDTHAT THE MONEY WAS BEING HANDLED PROPERLY, WHICH iT ALWAYS WAS. HE AGREED WITH MAYOR FLOOD THAT THERE IS NOT ANY GREAT CHANGE IN THE OPERATION; BY·~ PERFORMING IT AS THE CHARTER SAYS YOU CAN APPOINT A NEW TREASURER AND THERE IS NOTHING AGAINST MRS. PHELAN. MRS. PHELAN REMARF~EDL~ THAT SHE DIDN'T FEEL THAT THERE WAS ANYTHING BEING SAID DIRECTLY AGAINST HER, ONLY IN THE POSITION ITSELF. SHE REMINDED MR. CRAGG THAT THERE ALWAYS HAD BEEN A THIRD PARTY, A BOOKKEEPER, WHO ACTUALLY DID THE BASIC BOOK WORK. MAYOR FLOOD ANNOUNCED THAT T~ERE WOULD BE A FIRST READING OF THE ORDINANCE AT THE COUNCIL MEETING ON APRIL 23 AND A PUBLIC HEARING HAS BEEN SET PRIOR TO THE WORKSHOP MEETING ON MAY 7, MR. KILBRIDE STATED THAT HE WOULD HAVE READY FOR THE NEXT MEETING AN ORDINANCE REDEFINING THE DUTIES OF THE CITY CLERK. THIS WILL ESSENTIALLY JUST LEAVE OUT THE POSITION OF CITY TREASURER. MRS. PHELAN POINTED OUT THAT THERE IS AN ORDINANCE THAT SAYS THE CiTY CLERK TAKES CARE OF THE PENSION AND THINGS OF THIS NATURE AND ADDED THAT SHE WOULD LIEE TO KNOW WHO'S DOING WHAT BECAUSE SHE DOES NOT WANT TO STEP ON ANI~ODY'S TOES. MAYOR FLOOD SAID THAT MRS. PHELAN ALSO WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHO WILL HANDLE TIlE PAYROLL, WHICH HE CONSIDERED TO BE PART OF THE BOOKKEEPING. COUNCILAMN OBERBECK THOUGHT THE PENSION AND ANY- THING ELSE THAT PERTAINS TO CASH FLOW SHOULD BE, TOO. MR. KILBRIDE STATED THAT THE ORDINANCE IS VERY GENERAL AND DOES NOT CONTAIN A LOT OF DAY TO DAY OPERATIONS, WHICH ARE OUTLINED IN THE STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. MAYOR FLOOD SAID THAT IF THE ORDINANCE IS ADOPTED AND THE DEPARTMENTS ARE SPLIT, THEN GUIDELINES WOULD BE DISCUSSED. MEETING ADJOURNED AT 7:45 P.M. City Clerk Mayor