AAC F A M I L Y F R I E N D S » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » »
AAC Benefits Manager Becky Comet shows off the recently launched new identification cards for AAC members. The cards will be available at the AAC’s annual conference in August in Hot Springs. The new cards feature the AAC’s new seal, a signature strip and a link to the new member discounts found at
www.arcounties.org.
Treasurer
Continued From Previous Page <<<
by ourselves.” Topics such as facility issues, upcoming projects and employee of the months are all addressed during these meetings. Te treasurer is responsible for the custody and disbursement of all county funds, school district funds, improvement district funds and city funds. Ratcliffe said the largest misconception of the treasurer’s role is that “we are the ‘collector’ of tax
revenue instead of the ‘disbursement officer’ of tax revenue.” Te treasurer receives tax collections (property, sales and property tax relief), county turnback funds, federal matching funds and revenues from various other sources. After receiving these rev- enues, the treasurer distributes the money to the various taxing units which include school districts. Benton County’s taxing unit disbursements are disseminated as such — 80 percent to public schools; 10 percent to city government; 8 percent to county government and 2 per- cent to county roads. Benton County has 625 employees and all but about 100 of them enjoy direct deposit of their
paychecks and a new employee portal that allows online access to an array of human resource in- formation including employee handbooks, direct deposits, checks and W-2s. “Te advent of those processes has allowed us to save on printing copies of checks and our pay
stubs are digital as well,” Ratcliffe said. Ratcliffe’s office disburses all payable claims and issues checks to the total of about 200 transac- tions per week. “I enjoyed visiting the Benton County officials. It was filled with new and interesting details about their jobs,” Bledsoe said. “I thought I was very knowledgeable and well-informed but after spending some time with them, I learned even more about what they do.” Te treasurer’s office is also responsible for generating revenue reports for budgetary purposes for school districts, cities and volunteer fire departments. Treasurer’s are also faced with the investment responsibilities of county funds aiming to maxi-
mize interest at time of renewal and purchase of various investments. Te office has also focused on scanning documents of treasurer’s processes to reduce storage cost. “I think it’s a great idea,” Ratcliffe said about legislators job shadowing county officials. “I felt like it was enlightening for both.” Tis is the first time that a legislator has spent time learning an overview of the treasurer’s office
here and I feel that they have a better understanding of how county government operates.” “I think it is important that legislators spend time with their county elected officials,” Bledsoe
said. “It helps the legislator see the county officials as being part of a team especially when there are issues from constituents. A legislator also learns to appreciate their expertise and competence by understanding the importance of their jobs to the county and to the state. County government is
COUNTY LINES, WINTER 2013 25
Collector
Continued From Previous Page <<< “Working with some of the 650 disabled
veterans in our county is also a rewarding part of the job,” Peterson said. “We work with them on the proper documentation for them to re- ceive exemptions. It’s a big benefit for them to get those exemptions.” Senator Bledsoe echoed Peterson’s thoughts
on veteran exemptions. “In today’s world, we have more and more
veterans,” Bledsoe said. “Some of which are se- verely injured and I feel that we really need to help them whenever we can.” Bledsoe and Peterson have been friends for
years and their friendship was evident in their communications. “How could you not love to work here,”
Bledsoe stated. “It is important. We have to have very competent people in each of these important positions so that we can fund the functions of the counties.”
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60