Council in pursuit of sheriff's runaway spending
NWI Times
Feb 10, 2017
CROWN POINT — The Lake County sheriff is in trouble again for overspending his department's budget.
Melanie Dillon, the sheriff's supervisor of bookkeeping, asked the Lake County Council on Thursday during a workshop meeting for $179,700 to pay for food, cleaning, the purchase of police uniforms and repair services vendors provided late last year.
"We ran out of money," she said when asked why she didn't pay these bills earlier.
Buncich didn't appear before the council. He has been absent from council meetings since being indicted in November on federal bribery and fraud charges. He is pleading not guilty and awaiting trial.
Councilman Jamal Washington, D-Merrillville, said, "Now we have to find this from the 2017 budget. To me, that is an insult. This is an ongoing thing, and I'm not taking this lightly."
Councilman Eldon Strong, R-Crown Point, said there is little point in drawing up an annual budget if the sheriff spends more than his allotment and comes back to the council month after month with bills.
The council didn't indicate whether it would vote at Tuesday's regular meeting to find more money to meet this shortfall.
"Our patience is running out," Strong said.
A year ago, the council dressed the sheriff down for medical bill overruns for county jail inmates that approached $2 million. An angry council transferred the sheriff's financial duties on medical bills to a consultant.
Councilman David Hamm, D-Hammond, said the council may have to ask the Lake County Board of Commissioners to take over non-medical accounting for the sheriff.
The council is set to vote Tuesday to override a veto by commissioners last month of the council's policy to require officeholders to get the council's permission to fill job vacancies.
The council hopes to use the money saved from delaying new hirings to give employees a pay raise,
Commissioner Mike Repay, D-Hammond, said the policy didn't apply to public safety employees, who comprise the largest number of county employees, and created needless paperwork for other officeholders.
The council also is scheduled to vote Tuesday on a resolution supporting victims of domestic violence and establishing a policy to encourage minority and women's businesses.
Council members Christine Cid, D-East Chicago, and Washington have proposed an ordinance encouraging county government to solicit work from vendors who have certified themselves as minority and women's businesses.
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