Members of the Citizens Committee for Consolidation will start working on recommendations to combine both the Kokomo and Howard County dispatch centers and sewer-separation operations.
The committee Tuesday voted to conduct an executive session to finalize proposals to present to the Kokomo Common Council and Howard County Commissioners.
Committee member Don Wilson, a City of Kokomo appointee, made the proposal. “Lets make a recommendation, and see what they do with it before we go any further,” he said.
Wilson’s motion came after committee members compiled a wide-ranging list of possible areas to look at for cost savings.
“They brought this to us,” Pat Crittendon, a city appointee, said. “We will use this as a litmus test. If we can’t get anything done on these two, we won’t accomplish anything on the others.”
Kokomo Mayor Greg Goodnight and Nick Capozzoli, director of the Howard County dispatch center, made presentations on how emergency dispatch services could be combined.
Goodnight presented a combined budget of $1.4 million. One option, according to the mayor, saved the city $990,000 and cost the county an additional $305,000. His second proposal divided the costs evenly between the city and county at $375,000 each.
With the second plan, Goodnight said the city would realize a savings of $618,000, and the county would save $70,000, based on the 2009 budget amounts.
He said if the budget for a combined dispatch center remains under $1.54 million, both the city and county would save money.
Currently the two dispatch centers have a combined 29 full-time employees, according to Goodnight.
The city’s proposal didn’t include a detailed budget breakdown and didn’t specify how many employees there would be.
Goodnight was critical of the county’s use of E911 funds, stating $95,805 is not spent on dispatch services.
“There are questionable expenditures used to supplement the sheriff’s budget,” he said.
Capozzoli countered that no money is spent from E911 funds that is not allowed by law. He said some of the funds were used to purchase computer software and wireless Internet cards for sheriff deputies.
“I disagree with the sheriff having Internet access from cars,” Goodnight said. “It may not be illegal, but it is improper.”
Under terms of a 1998 inter-local agreement, Howard County was to keep all E911 funds to provide the facility and equip the dispatch centers.
Cappozoli’s proposed budget was $2,061,934, saving $46,391 from the $2.1 million budgeted last year by the city and county.
Cappozoli’s plan provided for 27 full-time employees and six part-time dispatchers. The part timers would work 40 hours per week, but receive no benefits.
“The only way to get to $1.4 million, the only thing you can cut are bodies,” he said. “That means 12 dispatchers and three supervisors would need to be cut. There needs to be a middle ground.
“911 is not the area to cut employees,” Capozzoli continued. “We need proper 911 service.”
He indicated a willingness to compromise with the city and recommended a board be appointed to develop policies and budgets.
Goodnight said either the city or county should oversee a combined department.
Greg Lake, administrator of the Howard County MS4 department, overseeing sewer separation, proposed the county take over the day-to-day operations.
He said both the city and county spend approximately $600,000 each on MS4 programs.
Lake said the city could provide funding for one full-time employee and to support laboratory testing, while saving $500,000 if the county took over the program.
Kokomo didn’t make a presentation on combined MS4 services.