Richland County Council meets March 13, 2007
By Mike Cox
MWC423@bellsouth.net

Roll call

Joe McEachern, Joyce Dickerson, Val Hutchinson, Norman Jackson, Damon Jeter, Bill Malinowski, Mike Montgomery, Greg Pearce, Bernice Scott, and Kit Smith were present. Paul Livingston was absent.

Presentation

Caroline Whitson , of the newly formed Transportation Commission, reported the executive committee has met five times. The much anticipated Richland On The Move logo has been approved, and a consultant has been selected. The commission is moving toward a public hearing during the April council meeting.

Regular Agenda

A transfer of $50,000 from the general fund into the council services budget was approved after Malinowski asked whether the council needed that much money. He was assured the amount was accurate and would be needed. Kit Smith made a substitute motion to approve the transfer but establish guidelines for fund requests in the future. Her motion passed.

An interesting case of dueling proposals showed how much a process for emergency Hospitality Tax funds is needed. A motion to approve $30,000 for the eighth annual Gospel Quartet awards banquet was supported by Scott.

She said this group had never asked for money before, had a hard time with the original application, had to change their status from non- profit religious to non-profit not so religious, and weren't able to follow proper procedures.

Pearce wondered why, if this is their eighth year, they weren't able to follow the Hospitality Tax guidelines. Scott said the group had been trying for over a year to get their ducks in a row, and they had brought a lot of money into the county with this event during the past seven years.

Mike Montgomery, staying consistent on this issue, said it was unfair for the council to consider any group for funding that doesn't go through the regular channels. According to Montgomery, over half of all applicants are refused funding, so many will choose to bypass the process and appeal to the council at a late date and hope their cause is worthy.

Malinowski said the group should be held accountable for the funds, and refund anything they don't use. Joyce Dickerson felt $30,000 was too much. Jackson agreed with himself, saying the council shouldn't pick and choose among applicants. It isn't fair.

Jeter offered a substitute motion of $15,000. His motion was defeated. The main motion also failed, and the Gospel Quartet awards will have to do without Richland County money.

Almost immediately, a proposal shepherded by Val Hutchinson requested $5,000 for a junior golf tournament. Pearce wondered why this event, which is held in the city, on a city golf course, isn't funded by Columbia. Montgomery, ever consistent, made an almost exact replica of his earlier remarks concerning the Gospel Quartet proposal.

He is, as is usually the case, correct. The council has no set procedure for handling emergency requests for H T funding, and each case becomes a political battle over which cause is more deserving. But no progress is being made toward resolving the problem.

After all was said and done again, this proposal was approved. Maybe the smaller amount had something to do with it. After committee reports and an executive session, the meeting was adjourned.