Wayne County committee approves procedural budget instructions, reviews technical amendments

The Wayne County Committee on Ways and Means reviewed proposed budget-language instructions and a set of technical amendments on Sept. 23, outlining new recurring reporting requirements for county departments and making a series of funding reallocations before the commission’s final budget action.

The committee’s session focused on adding instructions that require departments and elected offices to submit periodic reports — for example, quarterly staffing-level reports and several departmental status reports tied to contracts and initiatives — and on a list of technical budget amendments submitted by departments and management and budget.

Mary Karr, deputy director, Office of Fiscal Agency, summarized the proposed budget-language instructions and said the changes were primarily date, fiscal-year and numbering updates. She told commissioners the packets include new directives such as quarterly staffing reports and recurring reports tied to specific contracts, and she asked commissioners to stop her with questions.

The proposed instructions formalize the incorporation of selected departmental reports into the appropriation ordinance. They include specific filing requirements and deadlines; examples discussed during the meeting include: - Personnel staffing-level reports due 01/15/2026, 04/15/2026, 07/15/2026 and 09/15/2026, to be submitted through SciQuest/TCM and to the committee on government operations. - A sheriff’s office recruiting report due 12/01/2025 and 06/01/2026, to the committee on public safety, judiciary and homeland security, on department letterhead. -…