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Ben Hill County commissioners adopt broad budget amendment, rehire key officials and approve county banking partners
Summary
The Ben Hill County Commission on Jan. 8 adopted a budget amendment affecting nearly 200 line items, rehired County Manager Michael Dinnerman and County Clerk Donna Prather, approved county banking relationships and confirmed Meeks CPA and the Herald Leader as vendor partners.
The Ben Hill County Commission adopted a comprehensive budget amendment and approved a slate of administrative and financial appointments at its Jan. 8 meeting.
Chief Finance Officer Darlow Maxwell told commissioners the amendment covers nearly 200 expenditure line items to ensure department budgets align with actual spending. "Our accounting system tracks budgets, approved and amended, for at least five years and can issue reports containing multiple budget year detail," Maxwell said, explaining why the amendment is broad and why a narrower amendment is planned for February. Commissioner John Mooney moved to adopt the Budget Amendment Resolution; the motion passed with Commissioners Mooney, Hope Harmon, Daniel Cowan and Bennie Calloway voting in favor.
The board also completed routine annual actions. Vice-Chair Daniel Cowan moved to rehire County Manager Michael Dinnerman; Commissioner Hope Harmon moved to rehire County Clerk Donna Prather. Both motions were seconded and passed. After the vote, County Manager Michael Dinnerman thanked the board for the opportunity to continue his contract and introduced Brandon Fletcher as the county's new E911 and EMA director. Dinnerman reported the county's cash position at $2,012,470 and said E911 renovations and new equipment are under way with an expected go-live date of Feb. 20.
Commissioners approved Meeks CPA to continue as auditor, and approved Wells Fargo, Planters First, Colony Bank, Community Bank and the Local Investment Pool as county financial institutions. Vice-Chair Daniel Cowan moved to designate the Herald Leader as the county's legal organ; the motion passed.
Votes at a glance: - Adopt Budget Amendment Resolution — mover: John Mooney; second: Hope Harmon; outcome: approved (Mooney, Harmon, Cowan, Calloway voted yes). - Rehire County Manager Michael Dinnerman — mover: Daniel Cowan; second: Hope Harmon; outcome: approved (Cowan, Harmon, Mooney, Calloway voted yes). - Rehire County Clerk Donna Prather — mover: Hope Harmon; second: Daniel Cowan; outcome: approved (Harmon, Cowan, Mooney, Calloway voted yes). - Reappoint Meeks CPA — mover: John Mooney; second: Daniel Cowan; outcome: approved (Mooney, Cowan, Harmon, Calloway voted yes). - Approve county financial institutions — mover: Hope Harmon; second: John Mooney; outcome: approved (Harmon, Mooney, Cowan, Calloway voted yes). - Designate Herald Leader as legal organ — mover: Daniel Cowan; second: Hope Harmon; outcome: approved (Cowan, Harmon, Mooney, Calloway voted yes).
The amendment and administrative approvals are intended to bring line-item budgets and vendor contracts into alignment ahead of routine reporting; Maxwell said a narrower set of adjustments will follow in February to fine-tune departmental budgets.
