Public Works Committee reviews stormwater district and three budget amendments; council questions gasoline and police supply reallocations

The New Castle County Public Works Committee reviewed three ordinance items related to stormwater and operating-budget realignments, and several council members asked for additional detail before any final action.

The committee heard about Ordinance 25026 to amend New Castle County Code chapter 13 regarding a stormwater maintenance district in the Village of South Bayberry; staff described it as the sixth stormwater district the county is implementing and said the petition and fiscal information are being adjusted as phases of the large community come in.

The committee then discussed Ordinance 25032, a proposed FY2025 amendment to realign $700,000 from the General Fund debt service line to cover materials and supplies in two divisions: $350,000 to Department of Public Works, Division of Fleet Operations for gasoline (materials and supplies) and $350,000 to the Department of Public Safety for police materials and supplies. Committee members questioned the timing and the need for the reallocation. Councilman Sheldon observed that some public reporting shows gasoline prices falling and asked why the county expects a shortfall; Councilman Street pressed for detail about why the police division would need fuel funding when officer staffing remains below target and asked for line-item clarity. Committee leaders said they would seek itemized explanations from the Division of Police (for uniforms, academy needs and other materials) and coordinate with the Public Safety co-chairs to provide clearer information prior to the budget hearing.

The committee also reviewed Ordinance 25033 to amend the FY2025 operating budget by appropriating $900,000 from the Sewer Tax Stabilization Reserve: $400,000 to fund electric service for sewer pump stations and $500,000 to sewer fund debt service. Staff said the recent winter’s increased electric costs for pump stations drove the request and that moving the planned bond issuance to later in the year could save on debt-service costs.

Council members raised procedural and policy questions: whether use of reserve accounts requires a supermajority (members explained that taking funds from the Sewer Tax Stabilization account requires a majority while using some other reserve lines may require larger thresholds), and why fund shifts are being requested late in the fiscal year. Several council members asked staff to provide a line-item breakdown of the police materials-and-supplies request (for example, uniform and academy costs) and to confirm the expected timing for new academy officers to be fielded.

No formal votes on the ordinances were recorded in the committee transcript provided; committee chairs and members agreed to gather additional detail and to bring clarifications to the public safety and budget hearings.