Local News – Tuesday, June 20th, 2023

The Harry S. Truman Memorial Veterans’ Hospital and the Columbia Vet Center are teaming up to provide area Veterans with services that includes Veteran’s Administration health care enrollment for those who are eligible, as well as counseling for post-traumatic stress disorder and military sexual trauma through their Mobile Vet Center at the Wal-Mart Supercenter at 500 South Bishop in Rolla today. The Mobile Vet Center will be at Wal-Mart that day from 9:00 this morning until 1:00 in the afternoon. The Mobile Vet Center is a 37-foot-long mobile resource unit where veterans can receive assistance in dealing with bereavement issues with marriage and family counseling also available. Additional resources for Veterans through the MVC include VA benefits information and suicide prevention referrals. The customized MVC vehicle is equipped with confidential counseling space to extend access to VA services for Veterans, service members and their families, especially those living in rural or remote communities. The MVC also provides readjustment counseling and information resources to assist Veterans in the difficult transition between military and civilian life. For more information, call (573) 814-6206.

The Salem Finance Committee will be meeting Thursday night at the Salem Community Center@The Armory at 5:30 to discuss the proposed budget for the 2024 fiscal year. The administration is striving to reduce the transfers from the Electric Fund into the General Revenue Fund and the amount for the next fiscal year has been reduced to $600,000. It is the hope with the addition of the 1% sales tax to the General Revenue Funds that those transfers can be eliminated. The administration is determined to continue to add money to the reserve funds for all the utilities and have fund balances of at least 25% of the prior fiscal year actual expenditures. Those reserves would then be available for disasters or economic hardships with a vote of the aldermen. The budget does include a 10% increase in fuel costs and a 10% increase in utilities with increases in supply and material costs as well. The administration has made a number of assumptions on employee retention and recruitment that are included in the proposed budget that includes the adoption of a new personnel policy and leave amounts that includes the addition of two personal days per year. The administration recommends the approval of a new employee health insurance proposal that would come in around $535 per month per employee which is under the $550 per month threshold which had been set by the aldermen as well as pay schedule adjustments based on the Missouri Municipal League salary survey, and the cost of living adjustments with a 4% increase recommended for fiscal year 2024. The board has also eliminated from the budget individual budgeted amounts for non-profit entities or other civic organizations such as for SACBA beautification, the Dent County Extension, the Dent County Museum, Project Graduation and Healthy Dent County at the Salem Community Center@The Armory. The city instead has included a line in the budget called “Community Support” that can be funded with up to a $20,000 balance where these organizations can apply to the city where each year the Board of Aldermen can decide which organizations to fund based on their priorities and preferences. This “Community Support” line in the budget will only be funded after all the needs of the city operations, capital investments, reserve policies and obligations have been met. If this assumption is approved, these organizations will no longer be guaranteed funding from the city for the services they provide. For the new budget, the fireworks fund was left blank. The 2024 proposed fiscal year budget includes proposed revenues from all funds of $17,454,732 and proposed expenses from all funds of $17,212,813. The Finance Committee recommendation will be presented to the Board of Aldermen at their next meeting on June 27th at the City Hall Council Chambers. The meeting Thursday is open to the public.

The Salem Memorial District Hospital Board of Directors will conduct their June meeting this evening at 6:00 in the hospital library. Hospital Administrator Wayne Reid will give his report before the board hears a report on information technology. In old business, the board will be updated on the kitchen drain proposal, architectural work on the clinic, the strategic planning update and a legislative report. In new business, the board will discuss hospital transportation, hospital signature cards, foundation account changes, purchases and review the next fiscal year budget before it is approved. Reports will then be heard on the summary of operations and statistics for the month of May as well as the 340B program, the hospital resources update, the hospital foundation report and a report from the Chief Nursing Officer Ashley Sullins. The board will also review the marketing and community relations. The board may then vote to go into closed session if needed. The meeting tonight at 6:00 will be open to the public.

The Salem R-80 Board of Education meet this evening at 5:30 at the district administrative offices boardroom. After a closed session to discuss student issues, the board will move into the regular meeting. After approval of the consent agenda and communications, Superintendent Dr. Lynne Reed and Assistant Superintendent Nathan Wills will give their reports followed by the building principal’s reports as well as the activities and athletics report, special education report and instructional coaches report. In new business, the board will discuss the surplus bus bid, hear responses to the request for proposals for a bank depository agreement, approve the 7% WADA transfer from Fund 1 to Fund 4 for the purpose of paying off the lease purchase with Signature Bank and other capital projects and declare surplus property at the Upper Elementary School. The board will also approve policy SRCSP, discuss participating in the State Baseline Salary Grant of $38,000, approved amending the 2022-2023 budget to reflect actual expenditures and revenues before approving the new fiscal year 2023-2024 budget. The board will also discuss approving the contract with Build-Tec LLC for the construction trades building. They will hear any resignations before voting to go into executive session to discuss personnel and student issues The regular meeting of the Salem R-80 Board of Education tonight after closed session at 5:30 is open to the public.