No shortage of gray area
Earlier today I received a release from Wicomico County PIO Jim Fineran regarding a Daily Times article by Greg Latshaw on the county’s FY2010 budget; a piece County Executive Rick Pollitt claimed was rife with “important” errors. Here’s a portion of what Pollitt noted:
First, the headline implies that the county has “come up short.” In the release, I said, “I expect county revenues to be down by about $12 Million. That equals an operating budget of approximately $117 Million.” In fact, the county budget will be balanced as is required by the Charter. The budget may be less but it won’t be short. We’ll be meeting payroll and paying our bills as always.
Second, I have unveiled nothing despite what the newspaper story states. The news release clearly states that I shall present my Fiscal Year 2010 budget to the public on April 2nd. I said, “I expect county revenues to be down by about $12 Million.” While this will probably be the case, at this point it is a prediction since I point out in the news release that I am “preparing this year’s budget.” I still have several budget hearings left with county departments, so there is much work left to be done before the public meeting on April 2nd.
Third, at no point in the news release do I state that the projections constitute the Fiscal Year 2010 Budget. All of the language I used indicates what is going to happen…such as “submit budget proposal to the County Council by April 15th” or “details of my proposed budget.”
I anticipate working on the FY 2010 budget “right down to the wire,” so to speak. I am not having the public meeting on April 2nd for fun. I sincerely want to hear what my constituents have to say about my budget and act upon it if appropriate. Also, the financial situation with the State of Maryland is in constant flux and the Legislature is still in session. Decisions may still be made in Annapolis that could impact the FY 2010 budget.
(The emphasis is underlined in the original and bold in my version.)
Perhaps the headline writer sensationalized the story in order to grab the reader’s attention; nevertheless the point remains that, barring a sudden reversal of fortune, Pollitt concedes Wicomico County’s budget will be much leaner in FY2010 than it was in FY2009. The Daily Times also states clearly that the April 2nd budget presentation will fill in the details on how Pollitt plans on trimming the budget.
Rick also doesn’t deny the Daily Times assertion regarding 10 percent cuts in each department, which would lead the reader to assume that the $12 million figure isn’t vastly far off.
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