EAST GRAND FORKS – The East Grand Forks City Council discussed filling the vacant treasurer position and its budget implications Tuesday.
Finance Director Carla Anderson said the unfilled position has placed extra work on other members of city government, creating an urgent need for work.
“It was worn by staff,” Anderson told council during a council task force meeting with city staff Tuesday night. “Tasks are not completed as timely as they used to be and are now completed in a hurry. A few things were pointed out by the auditor, but nothing major. Things were just rushed because we didn’t have enough staff.”
Mr. Anderson continued: We sincerely hope that we can fill this position now because our staff feels like they can't take a day off. ”
The council plans to more formally consider the opening at its regular meeting next week, but on Tuesday it discussed the budget implications of filling the vacancy. The city's fiscal year 2024 budget projects a deficit of $176,064, likely requiring the city to draw down reserves for the third consecutive fiscal year. The position has been open since April last year, and the 2024 budget calls for it to be filled after July 1. The position will cost the city between $45,000 and $90,000 annually, depending on the final salary and compensation agreement.
The City Council last week approved hiring for vacancies in the Parks and Recreation Department and salary increases for the City Council and the Mayor. The position is budgeted through 2024, and the pay increase won't go into effect until next year. Councilman Brian Larson asked what needs to be cut to cover future payroll costs.
“Show me how much you're going to reduce to pay this person 12 months of salary,” Larson said. “My point is not that the position is not important, but how do we get that position? To be able to employ this person for 12 months out of next year, we need to budget What are you going to remove from?”
In response, Anderson said next year's budgeting process has not yet begun and council members will need to discuss what services they intend to cut.
“I understand. I'm disappointed this topic didn't come up when we talked about the park's position,” Anderson said. “We don't have a set budget for next year. So we have to look at every office in the city and say, 'Okay, so far it's in the budget.' But really look at the budget.” If so, no one is in the 2025 budget. Because it hasn't started yet. ”
City Administrator Reid Futunen said staffing cuts may be needed elsewhere to cover the position.
“Mr. Larson, I understand your question, and we're thinking a lot here about how we can get it back to you,” Huttonen said. “One of the answers[to position budgeting]is to cut staff in another department to make that money. I hate making these decisions in a vacuum.”
Futunen said city leaders don't have many of next year's potential payroll costs, such as insurance premiums. Huttunen expects total coverage costs to increase by 5% to 6%, but health insurance costs could significantly impact that percentage.
Councilman Clarence Vetter said the city should not fill the position until after the next budget.
“There are other open positions right now, but they shouldn't be filled until we have a budget. How are we going to pay for them?” Vetter said. “That’s just sound business practice.”
The city has until September to pass an interim budget. The final budget for 2025 will not be passed until December.
If the City Council approves a hire for the position, the process could take some time, especially given the administration's current lack of staffing.
“Even if they give us the green light to fill this position, which I think we should fill, we still have until July to fill that position,” City Councilman Ben Poczywinski said. It's going to take a while,” he said. “I've heard that staff morale isn't very good. It's not good for the department to have positions that are usually filled all the time, and then have other people work overtime to fill those vacancies.”
In other news, the City Council said:
- We received a presentation from North Star Neighbors about bringing the Community Land Trust to East Grand Forks. North Star Neighbors, part of the Northwest Minnesota Foundation, aims to make homeownership more accessible and affordable for people who otherwise cannot afford it.
- We discussed a license that would allow commercial use of the city's logo and marketing materials. Perhaps the city will develop some kind of licensing policy to govern the use of its images, as many schools do.
Mr. Voigt covers city government in Grand Forks and East Grand Forks.
