Helena council authorizes mayor to seek financing as members debate payroll cuts and overtime limits

Helena — The Helena City Council on Wednesday authorized Mayor Franklin to obtain financing options from a local bank to cover repairs to municipal sanitation and fleet vehicles, and spent more than an hour debating administration proposals to reduce payroll costs, limit overtime and freeze hiring.

The council voted to let the mayor solicit financing proposals that would be presented to the full body before any loan is accepted. The financing request is intended to pay for repairs to two front‑end loaders, a grapple (knuckle‑boom) truck and a Dodge pickup used by the police Criminal Investigations Division; the mayor described total needed repairs as “between $125,000 and $200,000” and said one repair estimate from an out‑of‑town shop was about $55,000.

The discussion unfolded into a wider review of an administrative package of cost‑saving measures aimed at closing a fiscal gap. Proposals debated included adopting compensatory time (comp time) instead of paid overtime, asking employees to contribute to health‑insurance premiums, a hiring freeze for nonessential vacancies, trial changes to sanitation schedules (a three‑day collection route), and consideration of four‑day workweeks in some departments.

Mayor Franklin, addressing the council, said the city must act to avoid new long‑term debt: “We’re not creating new debt,” he said, describing the administration’s preference to finance one‑time repairs rather than pay large sums out of current cash. He told the council the administration has already sent layoff letters to some employees and warned more cuts could follow if revenues do not improve.

Council members pressed for details and immediate constraints. One council member called cutting discretionary overtime the “low‑hanging fruit,” noting the city’s overtime spending had been running in the tens of thousands per month and that eliminating nonemergency overtime could materially reduce payroll costs. After discussion the council approved a separate procedural action requiring overtime payments to be presented to the city council for approval before payment; the council also discussed a policy approach for permitting limited, preapproved overtime in essential services such as police and fire.

Clerical and budget details cited during the debate: the administration estimated that roughly 80% of the city’s current expenditures go to payroll; health‑insurance premiums were presented as roughly $70,000 per month in total premium costs, with an approximate employee‑only premium of about $405 per month and an overall family premium near $495 per month (employees with family coverage currently pay about $172 per month). The mayor and staff proposed options that could include a flat $70 employee contribution or a tiered contribution based on salary.

Formal action: a motion to authorize the mayor to obtain financing options from the bank passed on a roll call recorded as six affirmative votes. The council’s roll call during that vote included: Mister Messina (yes), Doctor Miller (yes), Miss Davis (yes), Miss Miller (yes), Mister Eatherly (yes) and Mister Saint Columbia (yes).

What remains unresolved: Council members asked the administration for written estimates and proposals that would show exactly how each measure (comp time, contribution to insurance, hiring freeze, route changes) would translate to projected savings. The mayor and chief of staff were asked to produce a list of positions already cut, the positions the administration plans to eliminate, and the anticipated savings. The council also asked department heads to supply inventories of equipment and lists of unrepaired items before additional purchases are authorized.

The council’s discussion signals an expanded effort to reduce operating expenses while the mayor pursues short‑term financing to return vehicles to service. The administration said any loan terms would return to the council for approval before funding is accepted.