Iowa County Supervisor suggests restructure of EMA

MARENGO — Iowa County Supervisor Abby Maas said last week that the county should change the structure of its Emergency Management Agency funding to a per capita model so that cities have to help pay for it.

The suggestion comes as the Iowa County Board of Supervisors tries to fund raises for employees while keeping property taxes under control and conforming to state legislation that caps property tax levies.

By Iowa law, emergency management agencies may be funded primarily in one or a combination of any of the following four ways: a countywide special levy; a per capita allocation funded from city and county general funds or by a combination of city and county special levies which may be apportioned among the member jurisdictions; an allocation computed as each jurisdiction’s relative share of the total assessed valuation within the county; or by a voluntary share allocation.

Iowa County currently funds EMA through a countywide special levy, but Maas said the county should use a per capita allocation which would require cities to pay portions of the EMA budget.

Iowa County’s EMA commission, which sets the EMA budget each year, is made up of one county supervisor, the county sheriff and the mayors of Millersburg, Williamsburg, Victor, Marengo, Parnell, North English and Ladora.

“I think at some point we’re going to have to go to a per capita basis,” said Maas. “It’s really unfair to us that we have to shoulder a budget that we have no control over and no say in other than one voting member.

“It’s so easy for these mayors to spend our dollars,” said Maas. “And if we went to a per capita basis I bet you every one of them would be asking the same questions that I am.”

Maas, who represents the county on the EMA Commission, said she emailed EMA Director Josh Humphrey as budget discussions for the next fiscal year began and asked what EMA plans to buy next year. That’s what the county asks of all its departments, said Maas.

For example, when Emergency Medical Services Director Adam Rabe presents a proposed budget for his department each year, he spells out what equipment he intends to buy and how much it will cost, said Maas.

EMA doesn’t do that, Maas said. At the end of the year, if EMA has money left, it buys things. “Well I’d rather plan and know before I approve a budget what exactly we’re intending to buy,” she said.

Maas said that when she pressed the EMA Commission about its spending during a Commission meeting this month, the Commission said that maybe EMA shouldn’t be paying for the radio system for the county.

“Let’s be clear here,” said Maas. “We are paying for the radio system.” The county is purchasing $6,040,000 in General Obligation Capital Notes to pay the $8 million, 10-year contract with Racom for communications upgrades.

The county is assuming the debt for it, said Maas.

The maintenance contract comes out of the EMA budget, but it doesn’t have to, Maas said. “Give it back to us. The supervisors, we have it, and we’re already paying for it. It’s all the same pot of money.”

The only reason radio maintenance costs had to be moved to the EMA budget was that the county shifted the source from the general fund to general supplemental, which the county can use to fund EMA, Maas said.

But this year the county is taking the money for EMA out of the general fund, which it could use for radio maintenance, said Maas. “So we have the money. We could pay for that.”

If the $300,000 for the maintenance contract was removed from the EMA budget, that budget would drop to $400,000. “And I think that’s what should happen,” said Maas.

“Here again, I commend our EMA director,” said Maas. “I think the guy is really good at his job.” That’s not the issue she has with EMA, she said.

“The issue for me is the spending, and we can’t prepare for every single emergency that’s ever going to happen,” Maas said.

The department’s budget has grown 455% in 10 years, said Maas. She assumed that if any of the cities had seen their own departments grow that much, they would have a problem with it too.

Maas said if the Commission reduced the EMA budget from $700,000 to $500,000 it would have $50,000 after paying for essential things such as salary, benefits and insurance.

“What are we doing with the other $200,000? That’s my question. How much more updating do we need to do?” Maas asked.

“This is the question across the entire county,” Maas said. All departments are asked to tighten their budgets.

Supervisor Kevin Heitshusen said he wishes the county board had a way to state who the supervisors have control over and who they don’t. “I hate that when people chew me out about somebody we have no control over,” he said.