No legal counsel for council…yet
By Debbie Lowe

Carroll County Council would like to have an attorney present at every meeting to keep them on target with the various projects and issues they manage each month. Having legal counsel present would increase efficiency and provide a seamless flow of information about all matters.

"This is something I'd like to see," council president Rob Baker stated.

However council members only recently understood the need for the service and did not put funds into the 2007 budget to pay for an attorney for that purpose.

The matter was put to a vote at the Friday morning meeting and was a difficult decision for some council members.

The motion by council member Carl Abbott to retain legal counsel to represent the council at meetings, and to pay for the position out of riverboat gambling money, was seconded by member Nancy Cripe. It was defeated in a two-to-four vote.

Council members Ann Brown, Steve Ashby, Ron Slavens and Jerry Hendress voted against the measure.

The consensus of the four was that although legal counsel was needed, the expenditure was not in the current budget and not planned for.

"We need to hold the spending down for now," Slavens said.

"We didn't plan for it," Brown added.

Cash reserve in question

Brown reported treasurer Jane Brewington expressed concern to her about what appears to be a dwindling amount in the cash reserve for the county.

She said preliminary figures seem to indicate that in the past three years, the balance has been reduced by approximately $7 million.

Brown recommended council begin researching the matter to more fully understand the cause and potential implications of the perceived trend.

"We need to know why this is happening," Brown said. "And we need to prevent further deterioration of our cash reserves."

Brown, Ashby and Slavens were appointed to a committee to explore the situation. The committee will research the matter to find out if the reserve is shrinking and if so, the cause.

Highway department

Ashby said by pulling truck load tickets in October, he discovered new trucks purchased by the county had been overloaded by several tons each.

He said one truck was loaded with 18 tons, one with 21 tons and two with 22 tons on one day.

Ashby said the over-loading would have a negative impact on the length of the usefulness of the recently purchased trucks.

County highway supervisor Ramzi Awwad said after he was apprised of the situation, he issued an instruction that truck loads were not to exceed 15 tons.

However, in a follow-up Comet interview about the matter, Awwad said he directed highway superintendent Ron Francis to ensure truck loads be no more than 16.5 tons, the recommended weight. Awwad said he would look into the matter to determine the extent and timelength of the overloading.

Other business

Prosecutor Trish Thompson was granted a request for fulltime status. She explained there was no extra cost to the county for her salary increase.

Council member Steve Ashby said a full-time prosecutor could help move people through the jail system, which might provide savings for the county.

Louis Nance was appointed to the local Alcoholic Beverage Board.

The next council meeting will be Feb. 26 at 8 a.m. A nightmeeting schedule will be discussed.