Memos at Random


	A potpourri of miscellaneous news SCRIBBLED IN A REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK

County Council received proposed legislation that would set up reserve accounts to maintain property tax and sewer fee rates.

Introduced without comment at Council's regular session on Mar. 8, following an hour-long meeting of its finance committee behind closed doors, the measure is in response to a Court of Chancery decision in a taxpayer suit which held that the county's executive branch could not establish reserve accounts without legislative authorization. A companion ordinance would amend the current budget to add $204.8 million previously held in 'off-budget' accounts. Those amendments, however, identify the new accounts as "reserve accounts" rather than "rate stabilization accounts."

The measure before Council is actually a substitute version for one previously drafted but not introduced. The substitute changes several references in the earlier preamble, evidently to define legislative intent. They refer to county government's having acted "in good faith" and reference the extended periods during which there have been no rate increases, tying that to having have earned triple-A bond ratings. It refers to the court decision as having declared the 'off-budget' reserves "technically illegal" but said it wants to bring past practices "into full compliance with the Chancery Court's order." (CLICK HERE to read previous Delaforum article.)

County Council president Paul Clark tabled a resolution "respectfully urging" the General Assembly to change the state law dealing with the role and duties of the county auditor.

He acted after some Council members at the Mar. 8 session objected to provisions in a draft listing of requested changes accompanying the resolution. Jea Street said they could have "a devastating impact on litigation that has been threatened." Former auditor Robert Hicks has said he is considering going to court to challenge his firing by Council. Penrose Hollins and John Cartier said they had not seen the somewhat complex resolution before its introduction and could immediately vote on it. It is normal Council practice to discuss measures in committee before they are brought to the floor for action.

Robert Weiner questioned absence of law-enforcement authorities from a list of notifications the auditor would have make if he or she uncovered wrongdoing during an audit. "Would it be insubordination for the county auditor to do what every other citizen has the right to do?" Weiner asked rhetorically. Council attorney Carol Dulin said the proposal had been discussed with the county administration and Representative Gregory Lavelle in a process which "involved a great deal of give-and-take to come up with the best product."

Six candidates have filed to run for election to the two seats on the seven-member Brandywine school board being given up by incumbents David Adkins and Thomas Lapinski.

Debra Heffernan, of Edgewood Hills, is seeking Adkins's seat. She is co-founder and co-president of the recently formed Brandywine Special Needs Parent-Teacher Association, was a former co-president of the Bush Early Education Center P.T.A. and 2003 recipient of its 'volunteer of the year' award. She said she is running "to promote educational excellence for all children and to inspire students, parents and teachers to work together." Heffernan works part time as an environmental risk assessment specialist. She and her husband, Pat, have two children in district schools and one in private school.

Michael Procak, of Chalfonte, and his wife, Diana, are members of the Brandywood Elementary P.T.A. and have two daughters in that school. Procak, 38, said he believes the school board should provide an oversight function, concentrating on planning and budget matters and "leave the day-to-day running of our schools to the principals and teachers." Employed as a salesman, he is seeking Lapinski's seat. Filing just before the Mar. 4 deadline were Whittona Burrell, of Seton Villa, and Olivia Johnson-Harris, of Dartmouth Woods. Neither could be reached for biographical information. (CLICK HERE to read previous Delaforum article.)

Delaforum previously reported the candidacies of Jeanne Best and James Garrity. The election will be held on May 10.

County police will help the Wilmington and Newark forces, but only on an episodic basis and for limited durations, chief David McAllister told County Council's public safety committee.

"Any time another jurisdiction needs assistance, we'll respond. If they call, we'll go," he told County Council's public safety committee. But, he added, commitments to augment Wilmington's response to drug-related shootings and Newark's to serial burglaries are neither open-ended nor as comprehensive as has been reported. His department's primary mission remains law and traffic enforcement in mostly the unincorporated areas outside the cities. It boils down to "offering limited resources when they are available," he said. That translates into "five to 10 officers [participating] in a specific operation."

With "357 authorized positions for 500 square miles ... and [an estimated] 420,000 residents," it requires "a real balancing act" to effectively deploy the county force, he said at a committee meeting on Mar. 1. Including 28 not-yet -fully-trained recent police academy graduates, it has 345 officers on its rolls, but military leaves have cut into that. There were nearly 500,000 calls for service last year and, with more cellular telephones, the number is growing. Only about 10 of 16,000 home security alarms were actually valid. Because of traffic, "time it takes to get from point A to point B has increased dramatically," he said.

Councilman William Bell promised "serious discussion on public safety" while Council is considering the proposed fiscal year 2006 budget.

GRADUATES WHO MADE GOOD: With the start of the Major League Baseball pre-season, fans are

NOT RUNNING: Neither David Adkins nor Thomas Lapinski plan to seek re-election to the Brandywine school board. Both have been on the board for five years. Adkins said that is enough and it is time for someone else to occupy his seat. As Delaforum previously reported, there are two candidates to do so -- Jeanne Best and Debra Heffernan. One candidate, James Garrity, is seeking Lapinski's seat on the seven-member board. Deadline for candidates to file with the Department of Elections for New Castle County is Mar. 4. The election will be held on May 10. (CLICK HERE to read previous Delaforum article.)

ETHICS RULES MAY BE TIGHTENED: County Councilman Robert Weiner said he will introduce an ordinance to implement the changes in county government's ethics code that were requested by the Ethics Commission. As Delaforum previously reported, the changes would give the commission investigative power involving a former employee for up to three years after he or she leaves the job. Candidates for county office would be fined $10 a day for failure to file a timely financial disclosure statement. Honorariums for speeches and public appearances would have to be disclosed. (CLICK HERE to read previous Delaforum article.)

REBUTTAL: County Council followed the rules when it held a special meeting to fire auditor RobertHicks, according to Carol Dulin, Council's lawyer. Responding to a Freedom of Information Act complaint by Common Cause of Delaware, she said a meeting notice was posted outside Council's eighth floor Redding Building office 34 hours before the meeting began at 8:45 p.m. on Jan. 25. The law requires at least 24 hours notice. In addition, she said, Council president Paul Clark telephoned selected news media representatives and Common Cause to notify them.

The posted notice, she said, explained that the meeting was needed because of "recent developments since the audit committee meeting of Jan. 20" and that was sufficient explanation why it could not wait long enough to enable providing the standards seven-days notice. A revised agenda saying that "a confidential personnel matter" to be considered at the meeting involved the county auditor was put up nine hours before the meeting, she said. "In short, the special meeting of New Castle County Council was properly called, noticed and conducted," Dulin concluded. (CLICK HERE to read previous Delaforum story.)

NEW ARRANGEMENT: Each member of County Council will be allotted $15,000 during the coming fiscal year to distribute as he or she sees fit in the form of grants to 'worthy causes' if Council's budget proposal is adopted. That would be similar to the General Assembly's practice of allocating 'streets money' to legislators to be spent at their discretion for various projects in their districts. Until now, Council has acted as a whole on grant requests from nonprofit and charitable agencies, although they usually are sponsored by a member. The contributions line in the current budget is $82,500.

Council's finance committee on Feb. 22 approved a $3,157,910 budget request for fiscal 2006, up 11.4% from $2,833,148 in the current budget, as amended. Council was expanded from seven to 13 members last November. The proposed budget calls for $300,000 for contingencies, up from $200,000 currently. Council's budget request will be considered along with requests from county departments for inclusion in the proposed overall budget County Executive Christopher Coons will submit to Council, which has final say over how much will be allocated.

ENVIRONMENTAL LAW SUPPORTED: County Council urged Congress to back away from any proposal to take away Delaware's authority to regulate industry in its coastal zone along the Delaware River. An effort is being made to transfer jurisdiction to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. That would trump Delaware natural resources secretary's invoking the Coastal Zone Act to deny British Petroleum permission to build a pier at its proposed liquefied natural gas facility opposite Claymont. Council unanimously approved a resolution to that effect, sponsored by Councilman Robert Weiner.

	keeping their eyes on Johnny Damon of the champion Boston Red Sox and Carlos Beltran, recently acquired by the New York Mets. Those stars have something in common: They played for the Wilmington Blue Rocks. There are 75 former Rocks who made it to the majors since the minor league team was reborn in 1994. The Blue Rocks, now a Red Sox farm team, open the 2005 Carolina League season on Apr. 7. (CLICK HERE to access a list of successful alumni provided by the Blue Rocks in response to a request by Delaforum.)
Beltran		Damon