PORT ANGELES — Clallam County commissioners Tuesday approved routine updates to the 2016 budget.
The supplemental budget appropriations, budget revision and debatable budget emergencies each passed by 3-0 vote.
Once processed quarterly, commissioners now consider budget updates on a monthly basis.
The largest update for this month was a $32,464 supplemental appropriation to the Road Department for additional work that Streamkeepers performed for other agencies. Streamkeepers is Clallam County’s volunteer-based stream monitoring program.
The only budget revision this month was a $5,000 transfer from professional services to travel-business to cover remaining Washington Counties Risk Pool travel costs.
There were two debatable budget emergencies totaling $28,864 for Parks, Fair and Facilities employees resulting from an arbitration settlement with the Teamsters union.
“As the commissioners know, we agreed to this payment late last year right after the [2016] budget was done,” County Administrator Jim Jones said.
“And so one department at a time, as we’re getting toward the end of the year, any departments who didn’t have staff vacancies and wouldn’t have enough money to cover the additional payment needed to come in for budget emergencies to make the payment.
“Parks, Fair and Facilities was one that needs to do the budget emergency, in the amount of $1,183 for fair employees and $27,681 for parks and facilities employees,” Jones said.
Commissioners received no public testimony on the debatable budget emergencies in a public hearing Tuesday.
The board will consider adopting a 2017 county budget after two public hearings Dec. 6.
In other action from Tuesday’s meeting, commissioners passed a resolution recognizing State Patrol regional communications center manager Monte Simpson.
Simpson is retiring after nearly 50 years of service, Clallam County Sheriff Bill Benedict said.
“He has essentially been in charge of State Patrol dispatch for the Olympic Peninsula for probably the last 25 years,” Benedict said.
Alice Hoffman, chief civil deputy for the Sheriff’s Office, said Simpson managed communications from Neah Bay during the Makah whale hunt in 1999.
“I know he was very well-respected at the State Patrol and over at PenCom [Peninsula Communications],” Hoffman said.
A formal ceremony will be held for Simpson at the State Patrol District 8 office in Bremerton on Friday, Benedict said.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56450, or at rollikainen@peninsula dailynews.com.
