Council - Regular Meeting

Um this is my um clerk treasure retreat. Like Mr. Strong, my budget, my needs, my wants. I don't have a big budget. I don't have a big want list. Um we don't we have a small department. So hold on real quick. Are we Are we online, Dan? Thank you. Um, so turn everybody's microphones on.

So, I I gave you all a copy of my budget for 2026. And for 2027, I don't anticipate much that changing except with the uh deputy clerk and clerk treasure lines with we do uh rate in pay increases. So, other than that, we all have new um computers relatively new within the last year or two. Uh I don't really have any um we got a new copier. I don't have any building maintenance. If I if I have a issue with my building, I just call Dan or call call Jimmy or call They're pretty good to take care of me. So, my budget isn't very big. So, I just don't have a lot. Is this 26?

No, that's 25. This is this year's and I was just showing you the comparison. Actually, that's my 26 budget.

Okay, I got you. Okay, I'm in line. Thank you. So, uh, my budget annually doesn't go up very much, um, just because I don't have a big staff. I don't have a big, um, department. I don't have a lot of, um, extras, if you will. Uh, so that being said, I'll take any questions. You actually, I do want to, um, make a note of how the town standing at the end of the year. I think it was a probably approximately $700,000 that from beginning of 25 to the end of 25. I'm real proud of that with investing the town's funds. Thank you, Eric. Um, a little more encouragement from Eric. Um, but if you have any questions of me, I'll be happy to answer them. I just I don't have any. So, we were plus 700.

We were. And usually we were in the two or 300. So, good job, Rhonda. Very proud of that. Thank you. Thank you. Um, that's it. See, my budget's very small, so I don't have a How's the online billing going? Online billing is going very well. I think just more than half I'd say even close to 70% are using invoice cloud. It's been very successful. People aren't really complaining. They find they've said well a stamp 75 cents. This is only a dollar. So and you have the assurityity of knowing that you're going to get your bill paid and the water's not you don't have to depend on the mail because it's proved to not be very reliable source for us. But um invoice cloud is working out very well.

Add that to your list. Is it saving the town money? It is certainly saving the town money just um and saving I think customers money because they're not making the um the late payments, the reconnect fees um I say that we still end up with 20 or 30 a month on average shut offs. But um the the opportunity is there for uh residents to take advantage of and not sure if they realize that you don't have to pay to have it. you only pay when you have to when you pay your bill and that um it's a convenience fee that they're paying but it's working out very well. Good. Good. Any questions for me? I had a question. Rhonda got a line item for office equipment. Do you usually spend that?

I did. Last year I got a new co had to get a new copier and year before that we got new computers or or new um desk. Um yeah, usually. Yeah. No, that's good. I think we need to keep up with the equipment rather than, you know, having big problems at some point where we have to Yeah, we do. In fact, we a catastrophe. We don't want to wait for a catastrophe. We like to We play offense instead of defense. Um, is there anything you need from an equipment standpoint?

I still am interested in um um getting all of our documents scanned, but man, I'm just old school. It's hard to let go of those documents, get them scanned because we have so much paper that needs to be microf filmed or and and get rid of some of those big boxes. But and I talk about doing it every year, but I just can't seem to let go and do it. So, but that's my goal is to start um getting rid of some of those big boxes because some of those documents we got to keep forever and there's so many of them. So, that'd be my next goal is to get busy on getting rid of some documents. Not get rid of them, microfilm them so we'll have them forever. Do you have the equipment to do that?

I do not. Um I worked with um police admin assistant. She's looked into a program. It seemed kind of costly and we were going to look at other methods, but we haven't yet. What do you need from the council if anything? Um money. Lots of money. You're not big budget. I'm joking. You know, I'm I'm content actually my girls and I constantly ask them, "What do you want? What do you need?" um if it's something we could do within the budget that we have, we do it. If not, they are not afraid to speak up. But they seem content and they they don't hesitate when I ask them, "What do you need?" Um we're all good. Good job managing your Thank you very much.

What did he say? His seat cushion. Oh, is that what he said? Rhonda, you and your staff. You do such a good job working with the council. Thank you very much. It just makes everything so much easier when people work together for a common goal. It helps everyone. It does. Thank you so much. We all were definitely team players in my office. Appreciate it. I'll pass that on to them and I appreciate it. Thank you. Tell them they're appreciated. Well, Joe does bring cookies. I'm just saying. I bring and Emily does bring Emily's on. She hers are homemade, too.

So, no. Um, there's not a thing we need. I don't um if not we put in our budget and we we work within the means that we we set put down and we don't have any issues usually.

Rhonda, thank you for all the assistance you give me throughout the year. You're very welcome. It's very much appreciated. I like that you take the initiative and I don't mind a bit. So, thank you so much. Absolutely. Thank you. We appreciate you almost as much as Dan. So, I'll get there. I'll get there. Is it Do you have any more for me? If not, I will move on to the town council. If you don't um with August, I have papers that he'll pass out today. Yeah. If you just want to set it right there. Okay. Thank you. Thank you.

Um budget. I just uh for the council council does a good job staying within their means. Um uh typically council doesn't take a rate increase. So um your budget's pretty straightforward. Um if you have anything you'd like me to increase, decrease, uh add something, I'll be happy to do that for you. But I think you guys do a fabulous job of managing your fund. So thanks to you. Thank you. Does the EDC is it sep its own separate that 5K its own separate line item? It is. It's down there like the bottom four. The bottom third. Is the insurance mostly NRG?

No, insurance is um liability and it just went up 40,000. I'm shopping I am shopping around. I've got three other companies to interview or submit a quote um for that reason. It just was crazy. It went up so much. Well, we've had a few claims. So,

we've had a lot of claims. Um, that's for sure. So, I know it was going to go up some, but I I just I just I'm shopping around just doing my due diligence for the town because I I just think it's necessary. Um, I just that's what I should do. And when I just I don't want to ruin that relationship with Walker Hughes, but I think it would be in town's best interest, and that's what my job is. Um, the town's best interest and the best bang for our buck. And I I kind of keep hold of those funds. is just like my personal account. Um I don't take it for granted. Um I I just because it's there don't mean we can spend it. I like to shop around and get the best best bang for our buck. So thank you.

I take good care of your budget doing that because I we have seen some big increases there and we need to understand what our options are. Mr. Strong, what's left on town hall? I'm sorry, sir. Town hall repair. anything left on town hall repair? Not that I'm aware of this time unless we would decide to do something over on the chamber side, which we'll continue to look at that. So, okay. I'm not saying remove it from this. I just was wondering what what was if there was anything left. It looks good, but nothing that I'm aware of, sir. Okay. Thank you.

What's What's the emergency management fee? Where's that go? emergency management line item. Uh I I think it's just for that emergencies. Uh I don't to not spend it. Okay. So it's not Okay. I didn't know if we were paying into some county, you know, thing. No, that's just at your discretion. What you deem was an emergency.

So um this would be my last um ag uh retreat agenda. So guys, get start keep in mind I start budget probably next month. So give me usually I typically I do a three, five, and 7% increase and give you those numbers. If you'd like to do that the same thing, that's typically how I do it. If you'd like something different, I'd be happy to to accommodate. I have a question on the election. $500. Yeah, it's not enough. for

they they bill us to do um and it usually it's more for the presidential. I would have to get back to you on what exactly that's for, but usually it's more than that.

I was going to say presidential after outside the presidential I take it down to 500, but the presidential then I get got to increase it. Also on um invoice cloud I took it off for 2026. not realize that because I thought once we did the whole um install the in invoice cloud that it would go then to the departments but it still comes out of the council budget. So I need to put like $3,000 back into that for the monthly fees of about $200. So I will add that 3,000. Why the why all of the utility decrease?

Um I think just crunching you guys told me to cut 5%. So I I cut where I could. Okay.

Seven year sitting off this 68. I probably and I on those I just go back to to the previous year and to see what was appropriated and what was not expended and that's probably where I made that adjustment for your 5%. So animal control I know that's been a topic since it has I've been on. Are we still making runs? I thought we stopped doing that. No, there was on occasion we still have one or two or three. So that really that budget number is higher than it needs to be. But uh yeah, probably a little. But if you have a bad go then you just never know.

No, I'm not asking it to be cut. I'm just and we'll go over your budgets and if you want to cut something out, we can do that or add something in. Not a problem. Okay. Any more questions for me? Do not think so. I don't have Thank you. You do a great job. Thank you very much. I'm going to strive to be more like Dan Strong. I think we all are. We all are. Great job on the investments. Thank you very much. Thanks for your uh advice and suggestions and I was a little nervous, but uh it seems worked out for us really well. Started with Mr. Roots. It certainly did. I miss him. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Rhonda.

All righty. So, I'm going to take this liberty if the council will allow me since uh you know, we have great department heads, but I want to share with the council how fortunate we are to have a clerk treasurer that we have in Mrs. Gary. I know she is an elected official, and from what I understand, she certainly does not have to come to the office every day, but she gets there bright and early. a lot of days she's there long after everybody else is gone and she is more than willing to assist any of us including the department heads anytime that we need her assistance and uh I can't say how much of a pleasure she is to work with and I know she supports all of you and I just wanted to let you all aware as a as a resident I certainly appreciate that and how fortunate we are but also you know as being a member of the team how fortunate we are. I wanted to share that with the council. She does a great job.

Concur. Thank you very much. Both you and Dan's back in the lead though. That was planned. I entertain a motion to adjurnn. So moved, Eric. Second, Dennis. Motion to second. All in favor? I opposed. Thank you.