Riverhead Highway Superintendent Gio Woodson's budget has him seeing red, perhaps literally.
Supervisor Sean Walter's tentative operating budget for 2012 has almost $769,000 being moved from the highway fund into the general fund, and Woodson wants to know why.
He's not getting details, he says — and he didn't get any at today's Town Board work session, which Woodson attended looking for answers. He left shaking his head, visibly frustrated.
"I kept questioning it, asking for a list of where it was going," Woodson said in an interview after today's meeting. "I finally got a letter saying where it's going, what departments, but no specifics, nothing to show me why."
In theory, the transfers represent payments to other town departments for services rendered on behalf of or to the benefit of the highway department. Woodson said he understands that some town departments perform services for the highway department, such as engineering or the town attorney's office. But there were departments listed in the letter that Woodson says his department doesn't utilize and should not be helping to fund.
"I've got $82,000 being transferred to justice court," Woodson said. "Why? We don't even use justice Court. Another $52,000 is being transferred to the municipal garage — and that's on top of the $100-plus an hour I pay to get my equipment fixed," Woodson said.
"I asked for an itemized list," the superintendent said, "but I'm told they can't give me an itemized list."
And that's precisely what he was told again today at the work session.
"That would require every employee in the town to keep track of their time in 10-minute increments, the way an accounting or legal practice does," town financial administrator Bill Rothaar said.
"It's just not practical," Walter told Woodson during the meeting.
"When I do a job for the town, like Kay Road [the demolition this summer by the highway department of an unsafe structure in Calverton] I have to submit an itemized bill to get paid," Woodson said. "I'm only asking for the same thing."
Woodson contends the transfers are illegal. He says his highway superintendent's handbook, published by the New York State comptroller's office, plainly says no money should be transferred from the highway fund to the general fund.
"Those are funds taxpayers pay for highway services," Woodson said in an interview, "nothing else."
Walter told Woodson the town checked with the state comptroller's office to make sure the practice, which was implemented several years ago, was legal. And it is, Walter said.
The state comptroller's office could not immediately provide comment for this story.
The town supervisor acknowledged that the purpose of the transfers is to support the town's general operating budget.
"This started in 2008. It was put in place by [former supervisor Phil] Cardinale because there was a structural deficit. It was a way to hide the structural deficit," Walter said.
"The budget raided the highway department, the water department, the sewer department," Walter said. "There's nothing we can do about it now," he said, adding he hopes the amount of the chargebacks can be reduced in 2013.
Town budgets before 2008 did not transfer funds from the highway department to the general fund. In 2008 the budget transferred $604,800 from the highway fund to the general fund. In 2009 the amount transferred increased to $609,860. It jumped to $660,200 in 2010, and $738,800 in 2011. Walter's proposed budget would transfer $769,000 from the highway fund to the general fund in 2012.
The 2004 budget, prepared by former supervisor Robert Kozakiewicz, had a $250,000 transfer from the highway fund to the general fund. The transfer amount remained at $250,000 in 2005 and increased to $350,000 for 2006 and 2007.
"It just keeps going up and up," Woodson said after the work session.
"We could do a lot with that money. I could hire five more guys, which is desperately needed," the highway superintendent said.
In the 1980s, the town highway department had a 47-man crew, Woodson said. It's currently down to a staff of 34. In the same period of time, marked by tremendous growth, town roadway miles have grown from about 180 miles to more than 220 miles, according to the highway chief.
"Town highway taxes are paid for highway services and that's how they should be spent," Woodson said.
Correction: A previously published version of this story incorrectly stated that $250,000 had been transferred from the highway department fund in 2004 and 2005, and $350,000 had been transferred in 2006 and 2007. The budgets for 2004 through 2007 had no transfers from the highway fund to the general fund.The numbers cited in the article originally published Oct. 28 were the amounts transferred from the water district to the general fund for 2004 through 2007, not the highway district.
RiverheadLocal regrets the error.