Amador County – The Sutter Creek City Council last week heard a treasury report that spending outpaced revenue in the first quarter this year, and a separate report that staff is trying to catch up on finance administration.

City Treasurer Cathy Castillo said the city “only deposited $104,000” for the first quarter of this fiscal year, with $170,000 in operations, and had a negative ending balance of $12,000.

Castillo said the cash balance was $1.5 million, and the city is “continuing to experience negative cash flow.”

She said “almost at the end of the first quarter of the new fiscal year, we are finally getting sales tax that was due to us June 1st,” which “has been standard operating procedure by the state.”

Castillo said “what we received in September, we really should have received in June or July.” She said the “state has the legal authority to issue these checks when they feel like it,” and “their cash is the city’s budget.” 

Castillo said the city keeps “having more cash out than we are taking in, and the finance directors still have not closed out June or July or August.” She recommended increasing a city investment with Umpqua Bank to increase returns for the city, which the council approved 4-1 with Mayor Gary Wooten against.

Wooten said he noticed that Umpqua reimbursements were still addressed to former City Manager Rob Duke and former Finance Director Jeff Gardner. Wooten said: “It would be good if that was changed, by tomorrow.” City Manager Sean Rabe said he “noticed that too, and their names are already taken off the account.”

Councilwoman Sandy Anderson said the change in investments amounts to savings of “a couple of hundred dollars,” and it was “not worth agonizing over it.”

In public comments, Dan Riordan said: “Do we have a balanced budget or not?” Castillo said “when you are not receiving cash flow on a timely basis, you get this kind of distortion.”

Wooten said: “We need our financial director here to answer questions,” and asked Riordan to stop talking. Riordan protested and City Attorney Derek Cole said: “As a general rule, the public has a right to speak.” Cole said the council has gotten into the practice of “soliloquies.”

Riordan said “it’s the first time I’ve seen the actuals, so it’s a big deal.” He said Rabe “can handle himself,” and told the mayor: “I have a right to speak here.”

Rabe said the problem was that cash flow is behind. He said there are also “ongoing issues that we’re finding in the finance department.” They “basically had to rebuild the payroll,” and the new finance director keeps encountering setbacks.

Wooten later apologized to Riordan, and asked: “Are there any more political statements?” Story by Jim Reece. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..