The Otsego County Board of Representatives' Wednesday meeting was canceled Nov. 12, and Sheriff Richard Devlin Jr. is not happy about it.
Devlin, who has been skirmishing with the county's Administration Committee about proposed cuts to his department's 2010 budget, had planned to come to the meeting with several backers.
``We had people from all over the county who want to support public safety ready to go Wednesday,'' he said. ``Now it looks like we'll have to wait until December.''
In recent weeks, the Administration Committee, which has been striving to avoid a double-digit property-tax increase in January, has suggested the sheriff's department could get by with three fewer deputies and six fewer corrections officers.
Devlin has called the cuts irresponsible and promised to rally support to keep his budget intact.
The sheriff had planned to demonstrate his support at the county board's mid-month meeting, but board chairman James Powers, R-Butternuts, called off the session.
Powers said Friday morning that his decision had nothing to do with Devlin or the 2010 budget.
The mid-month meeting is an optional session, and the reason for Wednesday's meeting was to hear from the county's communications consultant, Powers said.
``We had scheduled the meeting for Blue Wind to update us on our communications project, but Blue Wind is not going to be ready to deliver a report,'' Powers said.
Asked about Devlin's plans to spur discussion of his 2010 budget, Powers said, ``We've scheduled a public hearing on the budget for 7:30 p.m. Dec. 1 at the courthouse. That's where anyone who wants to can discuss the budget, and the full board will be there to listen."
On Dec. 2, the tentative budget may be presented to the board for a vote. The county must adopt a budget by Dec. 20, or by state law, the tentative budget will become the official spending plan.
In the last two years, the board has failed to adopt a budget, as tentative budgets have guided the county. In the 2009 tentative budget, the county planned for $33 million in sales-tax revenue and is on course to fall about $3 million short. Making up this deficit in the current year while facing uncertain prospects for the future has left the board with two choices: cut expenses or raise property taxes.
The 14 representatives have differing views on what should be cut. After working on the budget for several sessions, the spending plan still would have come with a 40 percent tax increase, according to James Johnson, R-Otsego, Administration Committee chairman.
Since then, Treasurer Myrna Thayne, Powers and members of the Administration Committee have whittled the budget down from about $114.6 million to $112.7 million with a series of reductions, including those to the sheriff's budget.
According to Rep Stephen Fournier, R-Milford, the sessions have not been legal because minutes were not taken. Powers said the sessions were workshops with Thayne, the county's budget officer, not official committee meetings.
In response, Fournier observed that a notice for one session, held Oct. 29, was deemed an Administration Committee meeting called by Johnson.
On Friday, Powers said he had initiated the meeting.
``You know, they may find some technicality to complain about, but the treasurer is our budget officer. She was there, and we were certainly trying follow the spirit of the law.''
Fournier said the board should now hold four more full-board budget sessions to comply with county law.
``I think the rule's pretty clear, and the ironic thing is Mr. Powers is the one who was pushing for that rule when the Democrats were in charge,'' he said.
Powers said he believes the budget officer should present a tentative budget, and the board should listen to the public Dec. 1.
``Then, if someone on the board wants to put something back in the budget the next day and show us how we're going to pay for it, they'll be on the record,'' Powers said.
Fournier said he supports Devlin's stance against budget cuts, especially of corrections personnel.
Rep. Scott Harrington, R-Oneonta, weighed in on the discussion Thursday via e-mails to county officials and the media.
Noting that he is the town of Oneonta's constable and animal-cruelty investigator, Harrington wrote, ``Everyone, I think it is a mistake not to have the board meeting (on Nov. 18). I think that you should have it because a lot of people want to come and voice their concerns.''
