PHOTO BY JESSE DAVIS / THE VILLAGE REPORTER
BRIDGING THE GAP … Robert Half Inc. representatives Ryan Larzelere and JoyceMarie Elmore (back left) speak to members of the Swanton Village Council at a special meeting Friday, held largely to consider contracting Elmore to provide temporary fiscal services for the village while they seek to hire a permanent fiscal officer.
By: Jesse Davis
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
jesse@thevillagereporter.com
Swanton Village Council members heard from Robert Half Inc. representatives during a special meeting Friday evening about the possibility of hiring a temporary fiscal office intern assistant.
HIRING A FISCAL TEMP
JoyceMarie Elmore told the council she was able to fill the gap until a permanent fiscal officer can be hired and help take the load off departing Village Administrator/Interim Fiscal Officer Shannon Shulters.
Elmore has broad experience providing such services to businesses and agencies in the area, although she has not worked for a government entity nor has she previously used the Uniform Accounting Network, which the village uses for its accounting.
However, she said she has already begun looking into the UAN system and how it functions.
The cost of contracting Elmore’s services through Robert Half would be $91 per hour with a minimum duration of six weeks, meaning the total contract cost would be at least $21,840, and $3,640 per additional week.
While council members said it was a steep cost, they also agreed that the savings from the absence of former Fiscal Officer Holden Benfield — who was being paid about $75,000 per year — minus the $3,000 monthly bonus being given to Shulters for covering the position, left them with some available funding.
Councilman Deacon Dzierzawski echoed much of the sentiment of other council members when he said that while he was “not a fan” of the cost, he was also “not afraid” of it.
Efforts to hire a permanent fiscal officer have been unsuccessful thus far, with two rounds of applications and interviews not turning up a candidate acceptable to the village.
Both Councilman Noah Kreuz and Dzierzawski said the village needed to increase the pay offer for the position to attract more appropriate candidates.
Councilwoman Dianne Westhoven said average rates for a fiscal officer position were from $65,000 to $67,000 for a college graduate with no experience, and $80,000 to $85,000 for experienced candidates.
The village has thus far been offering a possible pay rate between $62,000 and $67,000.
Upcoming challenges putting pressure on the village to hire swiftly include the soon-to-begin budget preparations for 2027 as well as an audit scheduled to begin on August 10.
After considering the Robert Half contract and throwing out recommendations to increase the fiscal officer pay offer to the $75,000-and-up range, council members agreed to think everything over and revisit the issue at their regular meeting this Monday.
FACEBOOK COMMENTS
On Thursday, Mayor Neil Toeppe made a lengthy post on Facebook speaking about staffing as well as challenges he saw coming from the current council.
He specifically said building the team of Shulters, Benfield, Police Chief John Trejo and Fire Chief Cuyler Kepling had led to reduced operating costs, increased efficiency and reduced staff turnover, among other benefits.
“Unfortunately, over the past seven months, the atmosphere has changed. Since several new council members took office, division and conflict have become increasingly common.
“One council member has repeatedly challenged department heads over detailed budget questions, even though those departments are operating within budgets that were approved by council,” he wrote.
Toeppe went on to say the impact of that division and conflict has led to the loss of Benfield and Shulters, and that Kepling “has opportunities to earn more elsewhere.”
“If we continue down this path, we risk losing experienced leaders who have worked hard to strengthen our village,” he wrote.
Councilman John Schmidt commented on the post, writing that “council members have no business interfering in village operations.”
“When a member of council tasks someone with research or other tasks, that costs time, which can be construed as interference in village operations.
“We seem to have some council members that believe they have the authority to do so.
“The purpose of council is to enact legislation and allocate funding. Council can also review operations, but only review, not direct,” Schmidt wrote.
While Toeppe did not explicitly identify which council member he was referring to in his post, the council member who has raised the most budget and finance-related questions and challenges in council meetings is Dzierzawski.
At the end of Friday’s meeting, Dzierzawski announced he had a statement he would like to read, but was stopped by Toeppe due to regulations that bar discussion of any items at a special council meeting not listed in advance on the agenda.
TAX LEVY LANGUAGE
Council members were forced to pass updated versions of resolutions related to a potential future tax levy after the Fulton County auditor’s office returned the originals due to language that needed to be updated.
The resolutions, which were passed on an emergency basis, request the auditor to certify the total current tax valuation of the village and provide the amount of revenue that would be raised by a new four-mill or a new three-mill levy for emergency services.
The higher option would be split with two-thirds going to the fire department and one-third going to the police department, while the three-mill would exclusively fund the fire department.
If the council chooses to move forward with one of the measures, they will still need to approve placing it on the November ballot.
The next regular meeting of the Swanton Village Council will be held at 7 p.m. on Monday, July 20, at The Venue on Main, 124 N. Main St., to be preceded by a meeting of the council’s committee of the whole at 6 p.m.
