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concerned with how much the fire and rescue budget has risen during his tenure as supervisor. Board member Roger Welch seemed to share Massie’s sentiments.
Payne defended the Fire Levy, saying that the fire companies in this county couldn’t survive without it. Richie Burke also defended the levy board, and commented that requirements for becoming a firefighter have become more cumbersome over the last decade and turned people off of volunteering.
Massie mentioned the possibility of merging companies together, noting that now there are times when some companies aren’t staffed at all. Payne, however, doesn’t like the idea.
Other areas
of discussion
• Burke, who serves as county Building Official and E-911 Coordinator, addressed the board concerning the proposed budget for the Building Office and E-911. The two budgets were separated this year, unlike in the past, so Burke went over them separately.
The proposed Building Office budget, after some modifications, is $68,134 - the same as the 1996 budget, according to Burke. Fee revenues were originally estimated at about $50,000. However, Burke believes that fees will exceed that figure due to how much building is currently going on in the county.
The E-911 budget is $65,322. One item that was briefly discussed is insurance for a part-time worker. Burke currently has an assistant working a little over 10 hours per week. He envisions that position becoming a 20-24 hour per week job, which would qualify that person for insurance benefits.
Also a subject of discussion was the ongoing issue of obtaining a copy of the 911 database from Bell Atlantic. They have refused to give this to the county, which makes it more difficult for the E911 Office to check information and make sure that it is correct.
• Sheriff Larry Sherertz spoke to the board regarding the Sheriff’s Office and jail budgets. The proposed funding for both proposed budgets totals $936,050, an increase of 6.3 percent from the current fiscal year. Sherertz noted that the proposed salary increases are in line with Compensation Board
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