WARREN — Domestic Relations Administrative Judge Samuel Bluedorn on Monday requested that Trumbull County commissioners provide wage increases for particular positions in the county’s domestic relations and juvenile courts because of issues with hiring and retaining staff members.

Bluedorn was one of a dozen department heads that went before current Commissioner Denny Malloy and commissioners-elect Rick Hernandez and Tony Bernard during the first of two days of budget hearings for 2025.

Outgoing Trumbull Commissioner Mauro Cantalamessa did not attend the meeting. Commissioner Niki Frenchko, who also will not be returning to the board in 2025, came into the meeting toward the end of the morning session, questioning whether the meeting was properly notified as a public meeting through area media outlets.

Once told it was not, Frenchko left the room saying she could not, by Ohio law, remain in the meeting because the public was not properly informed about it.

Malloy did announce the meetings were scheduled to take place this week during last week’s commissioners meeting.

Alexandra DeVen-gencie Bush, the county’s human resource director, said the annual budget meeting was for information gathering, not as a place where a vote would be taken by the commissioners.

Neither Cantalamessa nor Frenchko will vote on the 2025 budget that will be determined during the first quarter of 2025. Until that vote, the county during this period will operate on 25% of the 2024 budget.

County Auditor Martha Yoder described the budget hearing as a place where county department heads are presenting their wish lists for what they would like to receive in 2025. Members of the auditor’s office later will meet with them to narrow their requests to what will be the expected 2025 budget.

Commissioners will vote to finalize the county’s 2025 budget in the spring.

Bluedorn told the members of next year’s board it has become increasingly difficult to keep employees in various positions in the court because people can obtain higher wages in other counties in the state. He is seeking range raises for seven domestic court employees, 21 juvenile employees and 18 detention employees.

However, he added, this is not only a problem here, but also in other area courts and agencies.

“I am trying to make these positions a little more attractive to people,” Bluedorn said. “The total amount of raises I’m asking for is $185,358. About $62,000 is general fund neutral, because they are paid through our reclaim program. They are funded through the Department of Youth Services.”

“They want to keep our youth in the community,” he said. “They provide funds for crisis counseling and other programming.”

The domestic relations court has 16 employees, plus two judges; there are 32 employees in juvenile court; and 21 employees in juvenile detention for a total of 71 employees. Bluedorn is projecting a $1.78 million total wage budget in 2025. He said the court has been applying for numerous grants, including one to improve technology in the courts. The court has secured six grants at $1,159,875 for the 2024-25 year.

Christy Sostaric said the domestic court’s total budget requests for 2025 would be about $7.6 million. In 2024, its budget was $6.3 million.

Bluedorn said payroll in the juvenile court has historically been extremely low when compared to their contemporaries.

Questioned how court costs can be used in its budgeting, Bluedorn said that money is primarily used for improvements on its building and computers.

“Court costs cannot be used for personnel,” he said.

Outgoing Clerk of Courts Karen Infante Allen is requesting a $1.4 million budget for 2025 compared to the approximately $1.3 million budget it received in 2024.

“You have one of the most underpaid departments in the county,” Malloy said. “You’ve remained pretty consistent.”

She noted that her employees are very concerned about the increased amount they will have to contribute for their health care.

PLANNING COMMISSION

Trumbull County Planning Commission Director Julie Green suggested she would like to hire more interns for temporary positions.

Green said members of her seven-person staff have done work with every town, village and township around Trumbull County.

“If we receive more money, we will do more projects,” Green said.

The department has three grant writers, including herself, who seek out new grants, so they continue doing the work they already have been doing and more.

However, she added, that all employees are cross trained to do one another’s jobs, so any one of them may be involved in applying for grants.

Yoder said Green and members of her team have been very helpful in working with some townships in writing their American Rescue Plan grant applications to provide them with the best chance of being approved.

OTHER DEPARTMENTS

The Veteran Services Commission will seek to obtain $70,000 for a new vehicle for the transportation of veterans.

“Our budget that was approved by our board is below the 0.5 millage we are allowed to request,” new director Cari Delgado said.

County Treasurer Sam Lamancusa is requesting a 5% increase in wages for employees in his office that would be based on proposed union wage increases. There are 11 employees in the department.

He is expected to add a cashier, so they will have three cashiers available. Lamancusa said they decreased the amount of postage used in his office because they are sharing a postage machine with the county auditor’s office.

Lamancusa said his office receives less fees for the Land Bank Reutilization because of the lower amount of tax delinquency.

Lamancusa is seeking to replace a folding machine for $5,000, three currency certifiers for $14,000 and the placement of a kiosk outside of the treasurer’s office.

Trumbull Prosecutor Dennis Watkins is requesting an increase that will allow his office to turn a part-time employee into a full-time one. He also wants two employees who are working at his office using a grant to become full-time permanent positions paid through his office budget.

Watkins noted his office has the possibility of one resignation and two retirements next year. The Ohio State University Extension Center in Cortland is not asking for an increase over the $231,543 provided to it in 2024.

“The funding increase allowed us to increase the hours of our office associate to 40 hours per week, reduce or eliminate the costs of some problems and provide more time for education programs,” extension member Lee A. Beers said.

There are 11 additional departments that will appear before the commissioners today to justify their 2025 budget proposals.