“I presented to the board my concerns at the last meeting that the weighmaster program … all of the money from that program goes back to the State of Michigan and so far this year the cost to the taxpayers of the county $16,146 to support the weighmaster program and unfortunately the fines for this year were only $318 so that money would go to the State of Michigan,” he said. “I think maybe the article might have been just a little misleading—it wasn’t all of the fines and costs that I was talking about, it was the weighmaster fines.”
The article in question—“A Fine Fix” May 29 edition of the Boyne City Gazette—detailed the Charlevoix County Board’s discussion and overall agreement that the county should investigate the possibility of redirecting an unspecified amount of money from the penal funds libraries receive to the Charlevoix County Road Commission and Charlevoix County Sheriff Office.
Lasater added, “And, according to information that I have received today, it would take legislative action to even change anything; so, we’re not going in that direction—at least, I’m not going to support going in that direction.”
The $16,000-plus price tag to operate the weighmaster program—which fines semi trucks for being overweight—is paid for by the  Charlevoix County Road Commission.
Charlevoix County Commissioner Larry Sullivan (R-District 6) said it was his understanding that the county, through a local ordinance, could recapture the weighmaster fines. However, Charlevoix County Clerk Cherie Browe said she had personally spoken with the Charlevoix County 90th District Judge and was told that that would not be a legal recourse for the county to take.
Charlevoix Public Library Director Val Meyerson said the constitution was written thusly to help alleviate any sort of corruption which may occur when a policing agency is able to write tickets and receive any moneys from those tickets.
Building and grounds took no action on this matter as none was required.

 

Dear Christine,
I don’t want to be mean, but you have no right to be resentful toward your aunt. This is the deal you signed up for, and she did nothing
wrong. Wanting her money back now isn’t greedy or malicious on her part, and it’s definitely not worth putting a family relationship at
risk. I know what you’re thinking, because it’s just human nature. You just went through a lot, and the situation didn’t work out as planned. Plus, it doesn’t sound like your aunt is hurting financially if she put $30,000 toward helping you in the deal. Part of you is thinking she has plenty of money, so why doesn’t she just forgive the debt and forget about everything? If you were barely scraping by, I might suggest that you sit down and talk with her over a cup of coffee, explain the situation and ask her to forgive the debt. Right now, the little girl part of you is whining, “Oh, come on. Just let me go!” But the grown-up Christine knows better. That part of you is  whispering, “You know what to do…” Pay her back as quickly as possible, and get this bad deal behind you for good. You said you make good money, so just take care of your responsibility. It’ll hurt some, but it’s better than taking a chance on ruining the relationship with a very generous and loving aunt.
—Dave

* Dave Ramsey is America’s trusted voice on money and business. He’s authored four New York Times best-selling books: Financial Peace, More Than Enough, The Total Money Makeover and EntreLeadership. The Dave Ramsey Show is heard by more than 6 million listeners each week on more than 500 radio stations. Follow Dave on Twitter at @DaveRamsey and on the web at daveramsey.com.

 

Specifically cited was the Porter Creek Natural Area near Boyne City, which the Charlevoix County Parks & Recreation Committee decided, in late-May, should allow deer hunting only and should include restrictions such as registering hunters with the county for the dates they wish to hunt, and limiting hunting activity to between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31 each year.

“Personally, I think we should just allow hunting,” Maxwell said. “If we have problems we’ll we can change it later on.”

Charlevoix County Clerk Cherie Browe said the county had already received a legal opinion stating that hunting is automatically allowed on governmental lands unless it has been specifically outlawed or otherwise regulated.

Charlevoix County Commissioner and Building & Grounds Committee member Larry Sullivan (R-District 6) said the problem is that people use high-powered rifles to hunt deer.

“Those bullets will go a mile or further [sic]; a shotgun has very short range,” he said…. “If you’re going to allow for deer hunting which is, again, typically high-powered rifles, what’s the problem with shotguns?”

Sullivan added, “I can see no hunting at Whiting Park. The use there is tremendously different.”

Charlevoix County Commissioner and Building & Grounds Committee member Richard Gillespie (R-District 5) said he does not want to see yet another ordinance created.

“It may be worthwhile considering developing an ordinance for Thumb and Whiting (parks),” Sullivan said.

Maxwell said he has had a sign up that reads “No Hunting” but Browe said the sign is not legal unless there is an ordinance behind it.

Gillespie said you could erect a sign that reads “Please No Hunting.”

Charlevoix County Commissioner and Building & Grounds Committee member George T. Lasater (R-District 1) said, back when he was the county sheriff, he only had issues with people hunting where they weren’t supposed to once or twice per year but not specifically in the areas discussed.

Sullivan said the issue needs to be investigated to ensure that unenforceable rules are not being posted as though they were the law.

The building and grounds committee agreed to have the matter researched by civil counsel.

 

“It went very smoothly. Financially we’re in very good shape, and we corrected the few issues that did come up and put processes in place so that they do not happen again,” said Charlevoix County Clerk and Fiscal Officer Cherie Browe.

Auditing firm Harris Group CPA outlined what it identified as various “deficiencies” in a March 12 letter to Charlevoix County.

“A control deficiency exists when the design or operation of a control does not allow management or employees, in the normal course of performing their assigned functions, to prevent or detect misstatements on a timely basis,” Harris Group CPA stated in their auditing assessment. “A significant deficiency is a control deficiency, or a combination of control deficiencies, that adversely affects the entity’s ability to initiate, authorize, record, process, or report financial data reliably in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles such that there is more than a remote likelihood that a misstatement of the entity’s financial statements that is more than inconsequential will not be prevented or detected by the entity’s internal control.”

Harris Group detailed its findings in a “schedule of findings and questioned costs” for the year that ended Sept. 30, 2012.

In this document, Harris Group discussed both material weakness and significant deficiency in financial statements but no noncompliance material to financial statements.

No material or significant weaknesses were identified with federal awards.

Harris Group did identify Charlevoix County as a “low-risk” auditee.

The issue with financial statements stems from the county’s decision to outsource its financial statements to its external auditors.

“As is the case with many governmental units, the county has historically relied on its independent external auditors to assist in the preparation of the government-wide financial statements and footnotes as part of its external financial reporting process,” Harris Group stated. “Accordingly, the county’s ability to prepare financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles is based, in part, on its reliance on its external auditors, who cannot by definition be considered a part of the county’s internal controls.”

They added, “This condition was caused by the county’s decision that it is more cost-effective to outsource the preparation of its annual financial statements to the auditors than to incur the time and expense of obtaining necessary training and expertise required for the county to perform this task internally. As a result of this condition, the county lacks internal controls over the preparation of financial statements in accordance with governmentally accepted accounting principles and, instead, relies, in part, on its external auditors for assistance with this task.

According to Harris Group, the county has determined it is in the best interest of the county to outsource this task to external auditors and carefully review the draft financial statements and notes prior to approving them and accepting responsibility for their content and presentation.

Deficiencies included the following:

 Revenue and receivables (follow-up)

The county’s system for recognizing receivables at year end is improving, according to Harris Group.

“The county needs to continue to refine the system of tracking and recording receivables,” Harris Group stated. “All departments need to inform the county treasurer of receipts received after year end that are applicable to previous year. Continued improvement in this function will provide more accurate interim financial statements and help with budgeting for future periods.”

According to Browe, receivables is one of the most difficult things to track because each department must account for all incoming funds—some of which do not arrive from state and federal sources until after the fiscal year has ended, even though they must be recorded within the fiscal year they had been awarded. This can sometimes appear to be a deficiency when it is merely a filing issue.

Schedule of federal awards and recognition of awards

According to Harris Group, the auditee—Charlevoix County—is responsible for completing the Schedule of Federal Awards (SEFA).

“Under Governmental Auditing Standards, completion of the SEFA by the accounting firm is a non-audit service that can impair the firm’s independence. The county should prepare its own SEFA each year prior to the audit to avoid any possible independence problems,” Harris Group stated. “We determined, during our audit, that the county relies on the receipting process to determine if receipts are a federal award. A proper award federal system needs to start with the grant application and focus on the expenditure of the federal award, not the receipting process.”
They further stated, “If a grant application is silent on whether the funds are from a federal source, this needs to be determined before the grant application is sent. We spent additional time insuring [sic] that all federal awards were recognized in the schedule of federal awards. The county’s process needs to be improved.”

Browe said governmental grants do not always self-identify when they are received and therefore she has obtained a list of all grant moneys so she can track them.

Deficit fund balance

The county has a deficit fund balance of $566,422 in the road millage fund.

“This deficit is caused by expenditures to repave Boyne City Road, this deficit will be removed in future periods when taxes are collected specific to this fund,” Harris Group stated.

Browe said this deficiency was identified by the State of Michigan who informed the county that all road millage moneys must be controlled by the Charlevoix County Road Commission instead of the county itself.

“Once we rolled all the money from the millage to the road commission where it should have been all along, it was corrected,” she said. “The state had never told us it was supposed to be that way before.”

Due to/due from accounts (follow-up)

The county utilizes due to/due from accounts when transferring funds between accounts, these accounts represent receivable/payable amounts between funds, according to Harris Group.

“These accounts need to be cleared out on a timely basis,” they stated. “The due to/due from accounts from 2009 year end have not been timely closed out. Those amounts should be cleared out monthly, but no less than quarterly.”

He’s not alone.

Four of five commissioners voted to nix the proposition. What is wanted is a popular vote, not five people. No public hearing; no inclusion of outdoor alcohol vote at the next meeting. That bill is dead, like the business it banned.

It must be realized of course that by not providing this service many potential customers will go somewhere else next time, after dining and drinking indoors or immediately opting to move along to the next town for friendlier ambience. Boaters and motor-homers can easily depart for Petoskey or Traverse City for their pleasures and take their money with them.

What is it with these people? These few who determine the decorous nature of dining and drinking as if reciting a church catechism want a tidy little environment wherein no sloppy degenerate drunks are wanted. Are they unaware of the tourist trade that reflects so much money spent on entertainment? Outdoor drinkers and diners are no more raucous or boisterous than your ordinary backyard cookout revelers with beer coolers. What is this: The Inquisition? A Salem witch hunt? The Vatican? A convent? A monastery? Perhaps a tea party.

This is Boyne City, guys and gals, the historic place founded in part by the black family Zack and Mary Morgan seeking freedom, lumberjacks, onetime home of the Tannery, hotels, brickworks, a pioneer village that attracted folk who wanted a healthy environment and opportunity to engage in enterprise in the burgeoning post-Civil War state via land grants and entrepreneurial energy. You mean on a hot day they couldn’t sit and drink a beer outside the hotel restaurant? This is just silly, petty and prudish to outlaw a beer with your burger if you choose the sidewalk patio. Preconceived notions of behavior or inference are insulting and a calumny. Good intentions overwrought are presumptuous tea-totaling arrogance.

This is a case of cutting off your nose to spite your face, as Granny used to say. These commissioners are not thinking ahead but back to some frozen time period such as Suffragettes with axes demanding their menfolk come home to feed the kids instead of their profligate Ten Nights In A Barroom dereliction. Wake up and uncap that bottle, folks; it’s not all that heinous to sit outdoors and drink a beer or a cocktail. We’re not talking drinking and driving, smashing glasses on the sidewalk, brawling, cursing, yelling, or breaking the Sabbath. This is a summertime activity. It will not corrupt the youth, won’t cause Swat teams to converge, insult the clergy, create disagreeable scenes, or be written up in Tattler tabloids as Sin City, USA.

This City Commission must be of the proclivity of staid and sedate churchgoing fuddy-duddies. But for one member they speak as if they were doing the work of God’s angels in dissuading the demon rum from their streets, medieval zealots demanding exorcism. No, thanks, I’ll just mosey along to Petoskey for lunch. Maybe that newest brewery has a sidewalk table.

“I’ve always been the scientific type,” said Chapp. “I’ve taught chemistry and biology and physics, and these are all things that involve split second events.”

The story began with a trip downstate and an appointment with an eye specialist.

Having a rough time getting through construction and a traffic circle, he returned to the place he had been staying afterwards.

“I was ready to head back home, but my wife kept delaying,” said Chapp.

He recalled that, as his wife took her time getting things ready, he sat down to watch television, but eventually grew restless.

“I started to put things into the car and show that I was ready to get on the road,” he said.

As he loaded the car, he placed a can of gasoline in the back.

“I didn’t really secure it down, but I did pack some things around it to make sure that it wouldn’t spill,” he said.

As the Chapps headed north on the highway, his wife heard a noise from the car.

After asking what it was, Chapp explained that there was an issue with a brake pad, and it had been dislodged from the caliper.

“My wife asked me if it was dangerous,” said Chapp with a slight shrug.

Traveling north on the highway, traffic was tight, and construction made it even worse.

“I’m typically the type of driver that likes to get between two big trucks and cruise at a nice slow speed,” said Chapp. “There was a big white van ahead of me, some other car behind me, and a large semi truck behind them.”

It was then that things came to a halt.

“The van in front of me stopped dead,” said Chapp. “It didn’t gradually slow down, it just stopped, and we were packed close together. My wife kept saying ‘don’t brake’ and looking at the vehicle behind us, but it was too fast to go onto the shoulder and there was traffic in the other lane.”

He added, “I don’t know how, but we managed to stop with very little room to spare, and the vehicle behind us didn’t hit us either.”

Getting out of the car, Chapp noted the white van at the side of the road and understood what had happened.

A woman exited the vehicle and pulled an orange construction barrel from the underside of the car.

“It was then that I realized that everyone was perfectly calm even though we all just almost died,” said Chapp.

“I looked in the window of the van and saw an Amish-looking man in the front and a bunch of mentally handicapped children in the back. They were transporting children,” he added.

Remembering the can of gasoline in the back of his own vehicle and the semi truck two cars back, Chapp said the reality of the situation sank in.

“If everything hadn’t happened in the precise order and time that it did, those children could possibly be dead,” said Chapp, noting the various delays that ensured a specific time frame to his trip.

Chapp noted specific things such as his brakes not failing when he needed them, the semi being able to stop in time, and the calmness and lack of injuries, explaining that he feels something was at work there.

“I believe we all have guardian angels, but I don’t think one angel could have done this alone,” said Chapp. “I believe this was a cooperative work between many, many angels to keep those kids safe.”

And, according to Chapp, that time isn’t going to go to waste.

“We’re not living on borrowed time, we’re living on gifted time now,” said Chapp. “Every moment need to be treated with that much care; and each of those kids are living their lives on gifted time.”

According to a 2011 Associated Press GfK Poll, eight out of 10 Americans—that’s nearly 77 percent—believe in angels.

1. Show respect to everyone—I picked up this one from your very own band teacher, so it might sound familiar — oh well. If you get into the habit of showing respect to everyone you meet, you’ll find good meaningful relationships in the strangest places, and people who you never expected will change your life. If I had never taken the extra time to get to know the school secretaries, I never would have met Glenda Crane, whose personality and genuine affection for everyone made me a better person.

So every janitor, every support person, and even the people you run into in the grocery line — show them respect and kindness and watch it come back to you.

2. Drama is bad—Call it what you want, but it doesn’t work out in my part of the world, and in not too long, it won’t work out in yours either. Cat fighting, rumor spreading, and general high school drama (for lack of a better term) will quickly get you a bad reputation and make people less willing to talk to you, let alone be helpful.

So girls, abandon the thought that another girl can “steal your guy,” as after all, he is a living human being that makes his own choices. Guys, if you get into a fight over a girl, ask yourself what’s really causing the fight. Play nice, get along, and it’ll all be better soon.

3. There is no zero-tolerance policy against bullying out here—I know that for the past 13 years, a zero-tolerance policy made it against the rules to bully, laugh at, make fun of, and humiliate your fellow students. Having been one of those students once or twice myself, I understand why (trust me.) That said, there are real bullies out here, and there isn’t any backup from the teacher anymore. You see, they don’t push you down in the sandbox. They’re called bill collectors, attorneys, collection agencies, creditors, bosses, and administrators. These people have real power to make your life difficult and very little holding them back — grow a thicker skin and get ready.

4. Take simple opportunities—One of the first thing I was told as a medic was never to walk past an open bathroom, because the chance might not come again. This applies to a variety of things such as sleeping, eating, and having fun — all of which can become scarce as you go into work and college. Enjoy things like laying in the grass, listening to music, and driving down the road. Don’t miss out on the little things that make you happy.

5. Don’t forget home—I know, you got accepted into a big college and you can’t wait to get out. I know, if high school wasn’t the most enjoyable thing, the urge to leave might be overwhelming. Don’t ever forget the little things that make this place unique. I haven’t forgotten my chemistry teacher doing push-ups because he lost a bet — that doesn’t happen everywhere, guys.

I’ll never forget Marty Moody reading the froggy story in funny voices, and the class breaking out in laughter at the last line of the book: “Don’t forget your underwear!”

I’ll forever remember Karen Jarema welcoming me back into a place that felt like home and making sure I got every opportunity I could. Those are my blessings, and you have your own.

Was it a sports coach?

Perhaps it was your employer?

Maybe it was the newspaper guy wandering around with the camera (just kidding!)

Cherish everything that makes Boyne City your home, because while other places might seem brighter for a while, none will ever be like the town you grew up in.

One last thing, just for the heck of it.

Find a mentor—someone you like, someone you trust, and someone who seems kinda like you want to be someday. They don’t have to be in the same profession you want, just someone you could stand being like someday. Got one?

Now over time, I want you to suck every last bit of knowledge, wisdom, and experience you can out of them. And don’t think it’s an inconvenience, there is no greater compliment in the world. Go and find what you’re looking for, and remember there is a town up in Northern Michigan that will always love you for who you are.

 

According to Boyne District Library Director Cliff Carey, he and several other library officials from around Charlevoix County will be attending an upcoming meeting where the issue is scheduled to be discussed further.

“No one ever wants to have anybody dip into their budget,” Carey said.

On May 22, the Charlevoix County Board of Commissioners discussed the feasibility of taking certain penal fines away from local libraries and diverting them to roads and police purposes. The board decided to pass the matter on to the Charlevoix County Building and Grounds Committee for further investigation.

Charlevoix County Commissioner George T. Lasater (R-District 1) had expressed concern that fees from overweight trucks were going to libraries instead of to the road commission and the sheriff’s office.

The Charlevoix County Building and Grounds Committee will next meet at 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday June 12, following the Charlevoix County Board of Commissioners’ regularly scheduled meeting.

“We’re going to discuss this with the commission,” Carey said. “Initially, my biggest concern is that it would have been nice if they would have reached out to us to say what’s going on.”

He added, “I want to hear what the commission has to say.”

On average, libraries tend to get six to seven-and-a-half percent of their funding from penal fines, some of which comes from the fines on overloaded transport vehicles.

According to Michigan Public Act 59 of 1964—Distribution of Penal Fines to Public Libraries—the proceeds of all fines for any breach of the penal laws of Michigan collected in each county are to be paid, by the county treasurer, by Aug. 1.

“This was created as Public Act 59 back in the day—it’s not like somebody did it frivolously,” Carey said.

During the May 22 meeting, Lasater discussed the fact that it is the road commission and sheriff’s office that enforces the weight limits and, therefore, they should be the entities to receive the proceeds of such fines.

According to the 2012 Michigan Public Libraries Data Digest, nearly 6.05 percent of nearly $413 million in library funding statewide came from penal fines.

For example, Charlevoix Public Library expected to receive $40,848 of their $1,011,721 operating revenues for the 2011-2012 fiscal year.

The Boyne District Library, in 2010, received $40,920 which was 7.37 percent of its $531,584 in general revenues.

The Jordan Valley District Library, in 2012, received $29,691.91 in penal fines for a total revenues of $404,274.

Carey said last year the Boyne Library received nearly $36,000 in funding from penal fines.

“Personal property taxes are going to be phased out of our taxes starting in 2014—that’s maybe eight percent of our budget—and now they’re looking at penal fines,” he said. “I did our expenses in hours that we’re open and it costs us $160 an hour to operate. If they take $36,000 a year away, that’s about four hours per week that we would have to take away from our schedule.”

According to Carey, the library provides so many services to the local community that it cannot afford to make budget cuts.

“Libraries used to be little more than book depositories but now they are community resource centers,” he said. “Last year we had 550 groups use our meeting rooms; Michigan Works! Is closed on the weekends but we have a Michigan Works! Kiosk that is available seven days a week; many places require you to apply for work online but if you are applying for a dish washing job, then you probably do not have internet, so we’re here for that too.”

Carey said the library also offers children’s reading programs, business classes, reference libraries, databases that cannot be accessed by just anyone using Google, printers, tax forms and much more.

“People who don’t use the library don’t realize how we have evolved over the years—it’s different but a better place,” he said. “We like to say that we are the great equalizer: we don’t care what kind of car you drive, what your level of education is or how much money you have … the doors are open.”