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Century’s Gas Department Comes Up Short And Can’t Cover Payroll During Multiple Weeks
July 18, 2019
During at least five recent weeks, the Town of Century has not had enough money from their gas department to make payroll and deposit the required payroll taxes.
“It appears five payroll weekly tax deposits have not been made,” Council President Ann Brooks said. “We will owe penalties.”
The town transfers money to a payroll account each week, with funds coming from each department such as water and gas in order to pay the employees in that department. During those five weeks in question, the gas department did not have available funds to cover the department’s paychecks and tax deposits, Town Clerk Kim Godwin said.
“I’m pretty sure that Friday there is not going to be enough from gas (to cover payroll),” Godwin said. The town may have funds in other accounts to cover the gas department’s payroll, but Godwin does not have the authority to make those transfers between funds without town council approval.
For that reason, the town council voted this week to transfer $5,000 per month from the garbage fund to the payroll account to supplement the gas department’s payroll. The transfers will be in place for five months. Otherwise, the council would be required to call an emergency meeting each Friday the gas department was short.
While funds were short of the amount needed to make payroll taxes, each employee did receive their full paycheck on time during the five weeks in question.
NorthEscambia.com file photo.
Comments
24 Responses to “Century’s Gas Department Comes Up Short And Can’t Cover Payroll During Multiple Weeks”
Take the money out of salary payroll! It will help them learn to manage the money better!
@chris “but I’m so tired of hearing about it’s all the Mayor and Council’s fault.” so then who is at fault? Don’t the Mayor and the Council kind of run the town? Or am I missing something?”
Yes you are missing something. The people run the town, then it’s the Mayor and Council who are to act on their behalf. So essentially, the people are not doing their part.
“THE TOWN IS DROWNING AND EVERYONE IS JUST STARING” The first rule I learned as a first aid first responder was this: Don’t jeopardize your own safety in order to save somebody else.”
Seriously? Use your head, this is meant figuratively. I’m saying no one is even throwing a rope out there trying to help. This is a town where people can come together. It’s not like I’m saying they should sign over their house as collateral. Have you ever seen a community of ants? It’s not only 5 of them doing all the work for the thousands.
Anyway, like I said the county doesn’t care about the north end. They barely get the grass cut along the road ways out this way a couple of times a year. Be careful what you wish for. The grass isn’t always greener.
@chris ……ummm.. It’s meant figuratively. I’m not talking about people throwing in money or “drowning” themselves. I’m talking about no one is even trying to volunteer a little bit of time or even coming to meetings to assist finding solutions. Have you ever seen ants work together? they don’t let just 5 do all the work. I mean seriously, use your brain. Your comment was just as uneducated as the people you are claiming are unqualified.
And again, the rest of the county can barely get the grass cut down the roadways and you think they are really going to give 2 cents about the people up here? Like I SAID, BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR.
So will Mr Eddy take an IOU?
I’ve told you folks. Go to the polls and vote for a WISE mayor!!!
@ IMHO: “but I’m so tired of hearing about it’s all the Mayor and Council’s fault.” so then who is at fault? Don’t the Mayor and the Council kind of run the town? Or am I missing something?
” I understand employees are getting paid to perform a certain job” What is the relevance of this statement? What does that have to do with the town bleeding red ink?
“THE TOWN IS DROWNING AND EVERYONE IS JUST STARING” The first rule I learned as a first aid first responder was this: Don’t jeopardize your own safety in order to save somebody else. What would you expect citizens to do? The leadership of the town is beyond unqualified, and does not appear interested in making Century any better. Dissolve the charter and surrender to the county.
They have made our town look like a circus , we need to get together as a town and get our town fixed . Get rid of all this ruckus and just convert it all to county .sorry but our town has seen better day’s maybe our town can be fixed but it will need all new people .Start all over again with all new people .How do you loose that much money and not knowing where it is going ! Do you smell something rotten or what !
What are you all complaining about? The splash pad is open.
Everyone wants to talk about the good people of Century and how they deserve better than this. I agree the town should know what’s going on and also be accountable but I’m so tired of hearing about it’s all the Mayor and Council’s fault. Hold Citizens accountable too. Everyone likes to get on their soap box and talk the talk behind their keyboards/cell phones but citizens don’t even come to the meetings. I’ve been to several myself and there was never more than 10 citizens there, usually less than that. The community needs to do it’s part too. I understand employees are getting paid to perform a certain job but all that is happening did NOT go wrong in a day and they can not fix it in a day. This has been decades in the making.
THE TOWN IS DROWNING AND EVERYONE IS JUST STARING WHILE TALKING ABOUT HOW IT CAN’T SWIM, INSTEAD OF TRYING TO HELP SAVE IT!
Do you all really think the county is going to care about the North End? Why would they when it doesn’t bring any money? They are going to focus on areas that do. That is already proven in other areas of the county. Careful what you wish for. Right now, you have a voice for the north end. Don’t lose it. It CAN get better, but it needs everyone to work together.
So yesterday’s question was where’s Wally ??
And today’s question is where’s the money ……
Does this constant ineptitude not concern folks. It smells crooked all the way around. Need to fire the impeach the mayor, accountant and the utilities supervisor. Century is already poor and this just unacceptable. Keep it up and the town of Century will be no more
I’m sure the shiny new consultant will get paid, even when payroll for the regular employees comes up short. Giving a consultant a 5K bonus but can’t make payroll. beyond inept!
More inept and sorry behaviors from Century Town Council.
So, they took monies from other “pots” to make payroll for the Gas folks.
Are they also paying the required Federal and State contributions for the employees?
Is it True that an individual person can request the Florida State’s Attorney to look into the many many many areas of mis-function in Century’s “Leadership”?
What a horrible and continuing embarrassment this Century Town Council has become.
Where is the money? Where is the oversight? While they may have hired a “consultant”, it appears no one is doing their job. When will the county finally step in and send someone with experience to actually run the town? Don’t think the town can wait for the “consultant” to get back from vacation. This is truly an emergency situation. Failure to act is not an option here.
where are all the new meters????
need to start back billing all the ones with no or faulty meters.
request a list of all meter customers.
Why do they keep throwing money down a dry hole? Why is the Supervisor of the Gas Dept not held accountable? What on earth does he know about the “Council” members to allow him to get away with all this criminal behavior? Why has Law Enforcement not become involved? There are more questions, but I am shocked that an outside agency has not become involved and put these crooks in jail…at least! UNREAL!
I wonder if this captain has the guts to down with the ship
Why not have each council member divide the town into sections. It’s not a big town.. Each council member ride with a gas personnel to each residence/business in that section marking them off as they go. No list? Not hard, get a street map and make one yourself. If they are receiving gas make sure that the meter is being billed and move on to the next one. It doesn’t take rocket science but it will take some leg work from someone other than those reading the meters. Maybe having someone ride with them will force them to check each business/residence. Time to hold some folks accountable. The billing only occurs when the documentation is turned in. So the break down is…. the good ole boy system…
The people in century did this to themselves. They elected some people that can’t add and subtract torun the town. Not good.
Century can’t stop the bleeding and its past time to shutter the town’s government. When the town can only account and bill for less than one third of the gas taps it has on the system, how would anyone ever expect Century to cover its bills? It has been months since it was revealed here on NorthEscambia that the town doesn’t even know how many gas services it actually has or whom to bill. Century remains the same old same inept and unable to do anything to correct the problem. New motto for Century – “Move to Century for Free Everything!” LOL!
This story and the goat roping story are one in the same. They are both about a goat rodeo!!!
I wonder if the King will allow Buz to start billing all the 100’s of utility customers that have not been billed? I’d still love to see the who’s who list of customers getting “free” utilities. I’d still love to know how many of these honest representatives are on this list.
OMG. The town treasurer or comptroller should see that there is not enough revenue coming in from that department, they are incompetent too.
Where’s Wally?