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Bath County board meeting gets testy
BY CHARLES GARRATT • STAFF WRITER
WARM SPRINGS - Despite pleas from supervisors to "put this behind us," former county administrator Claire Collins and other Bath residents interrupted proceedings during last Thursday's meeting of the board. Disparaging remarks were exchanged as the tone of the discussion took a downturn, and one supervisor felt compelled to defend herself publicly.
At issue, among other things, was the $13,000 Sheriff Larry Norfleetused to increase staff salaries in his department. During his training with the state compensation board and review of his budget, Norfleetfound $13,000 designated for "temporary employees."
Everyone agrees the money had been allocated to Bath County since 2000 to defray the cost of additional personnel in the department, but the agreement stops there. The compensation board told Norfleetthe money had never been used and was available to him for pay increases.
Supervisor Stuart Hall and Collins claim the money has always been spent - a total of $91,000 since 2000. The compensation board told board chairman Jon Trees and county administrator Bonnie Johnson it has no record of the money being drawn down.
Charlene Rollins, customer service manager of the compensation board, told Trees the sheriff's department personnel are "the only ones who can actually enter expenses in the system." Thus, the money could not be drawn from the state unless the sheriff's department entered an expense against it.
Several e-mails went back and forth between Johnson and the compensation board to confirmthe process and assure the county about the money's availability. County auditors Robinson, Farmer, Cox Associates reviewed the matter at the request of county attorney Mike Collins. The board ratified that review on a 4-1 vote Thursday, with Hall dissenting.
Auditor James Kelly, in his letter to the board, said compensation board director Robin de Socio reviewed the history of the fund. The letter to the board said, "These funds were not drawn down from July 1, 2000 through June 30, 2007."
Collins and Hall continued to insist that was not the case. Hall said retired compensation board director Bruce Haynes assured him Bath County had always spent more money each year than was originally budgeted. Hall said the $13,000 was included in the lump sum spent. He did not have any documentation from Haynes and said he did not plan to get any, but felt someone should explore the issue further.
Collins became agitated when the board began discussing the transfer request necessary to move money into salaries within the sheriff's department. She stood during discussion and interrupted the board demanding to be heard.
Trees wrapped the gavel a couple of times and asked Collins to sit down, but she insisted. Eventually Trees relented and let Collins speak. Collins said she had offered on March 11, if given the county books, to findthe money and prove it was spent.
"I was officially told I was a liar," she said.
Discussion remained heated on the issue during agenda items and both public and board comment periods. At one point, vice chair Richard Byrd took the gavel from Trees and assumed the chair. "I demand respect," Byrd said. "I will ask you to leave the room." Byrd told those attending.
Hall also criticized the way the sheriff's officeraises had been approved by the board. When Sheriff Norfleetsought approval for them, Trees called each supervisor to poll their opinion on the matter.
Hall mentioned the Freedom of Information Act and Sunshine Week, saying he believed Trees' polling was improper, as it essentially seemed like conducting county business outside the public eye.
On the other hand, Hall also believed Collins and former sheriff Tommy Black should have been allowed to present their information on Norfleet'sspending in a closed board meeting, not in open session as they did last month.
The general consensus of the board was that the issue was settled by the examination of the auditor and all but Hall asked for an end to the matter. "This sheriff stuff must have closure," Byrd said. He talked about his own compensation for serving on the board since 1991 and noted how little supervisors receive for the time involved. "The service I give to the people is priceless," he said.
"I don't care whether you like it or not, we have to move on," Byrd continued. "We were supposed to get that money; did we get it? That is the question." The budget is a difficultthing to look at and understand, he added, saying he knew that money was there to be spent and, "I never heard that number until January 2008."
"It may not have been done right, but it was done legal," Byrd said of Norfleet'suse of the money. Noting the difficulttime for him personally over the past few months, Byrd asked citizens to sit back, take a deep breath and give the board some time. "Let's grow up," he said.
Supervisor Carol Hardbarger was particularly hurt by comments made by resident Carl Chestnut, who said she had plenty of "book learning" but no common sense. Hardbarger, in a calm but emotional response, replied to the remarks, saying she was "very upset."
"I'm going to do something I said I will never do," she began. "I'm tired of people talking about my education in a disparaging way." Hardbarger has a doctorate in education.
"I worked and put myself though college as a single parent," she said. "I'm not going to apologize.
"I have enough common sense to not accuse people of things before I know facts," Hardbarger continued. "Because I vote differently, doesn't make me wrong."
Looking directly at Chestnut, she said, "Carl, you have hurt my feelings a great deal. You don't know me deeply enough to know my character and motives ... If you disagree with me, I don't disrespect you."
Hardbarger asked that Chestnut not bring up her education again. "It does not defineme," she said. "I'm a person just like you are. Because I don't agree with you doesn't make me bad or wrong."
She said there would be times when supervisors would get involved with matters related to constitutional officers like the sheriff, but that she didn't have the time or expertise to supervise what they do. Elected officials, supervisors included, should be given trust by the public, she said, noting she was elected to do the best she could and make the decisions she thought were best, not to please everyone.
"No matter what is done, somebody is going to be unhappy," Hardbarger said. She, too, asked the public to help put an end to the rumor mill.
Collins presented a letter to supervisors at the beginning of the meeting requesting an additional public comment period be added to the agenda. The regular meeting agenda has a public and supervisor comment period near the beginning and at the end. Since the meeting Thursday was a continuation of the regular agenda, the first public comment period had already taken place.
Collins said in her letter, "This addition to the agenda will solidify your continual and past efforts in promoting open government."
The board added the additional comment periods to the night's agenda on a 3-2 vote with chairman Jon Trees and Percy Nowlin voting against Byrd's motion.
Collins read a two-page letter pointing out the county had a balance of $8 million according to the recent audited financial report for the year ending June 30, 2007. She then reviewed the break down of the fund into reserved and unreserved potions. "What does this mean? This means that the County of Bath government has funds available for use at the discretion of the Board of Supervisors as approved and appropriated."
This stands in contrast to recent statements by board members of a tight budget this year and next.
New clerk of the circuit court Wayne Winebriner and his staff also got caught up in the discussion over salaries in the sheriff's office.Winebriner spoke to explain why he asked supervisors to supplement the salary of chief deputy clerk Annette Loan. Citizens who believed his staff had all received hefty raises were misinformed, and he hoped to settle the rumor mill as well.
"Two weeks ago I found out a lot of rumors were circulating about my office," Winebriner started. He detailed the situation how Loan was promoted to chief deputy clerk and because of the new classificationactually ended up with a lower salary from the compensation board. Supervisors approved a subsidy to Loan's salary bringing her above her salary as a deputy under the previous clerk. "I have the money in my budget," Winebriner said.
Like many others who spoke Thursday, Winebriner lamented the rampant rumors going around the county since the election. "The rumors have to stop," he said. "I have an open door policy," he said; if people want to know something they should come to his office and ask.
The meeting was a continuation from Tuesday March 11 of the regular monthly meeting. Between the two meetings and the emergency called meeting last Tuesday, the board spent eight hours in open session plus two closed sessions and work sessions during the month.
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