ST. MARTINVILLE — Two announced candidates for the St. Martinville mayoral race next year — former St. Martin Parish Council members Lisa Nelson and Jason Willis — were in the audience Monday night, listening as auditor Burton Kolder explained the nearly $1 million in cuts that had to be implemented in order for the city to adopt a balanced budget document before the end of its fiscal year on June 30.

The most noticeable person in the room, however, was visible only due to their absence. For the second year in a row, Mayor Melinda Mitchell did not attend the public hearing and adoption of the city’s annual budget.

“Our administration fell short,” said Mayor Pro Tem Craig Prosper, noting Mitchell’s absence. “She doesn’t know what she is doing.”

District 1 Councilman Mike Fuselier also expressed dismay and disbelief that the council was again left to make decisions without the mayor being present.

“It is incomprehensible to me that the chief legislative officer for the city is going to miss two budget hearings in a row,” Fuselier said.

In 2020, Mitchell missed the hearing, reportedly suffering from COVID-19. In the weeks after the meeting, however, she at times claimed she never contracted the disease and that media reports were incorrect. She also held town hall meetings after the adoption of the 2020-2021 budget decrying proposed utility rate increases, saying she was not there when they were adopted.

She had, however, been involved in meetings during which the rate hikes and other budgetary adjustments were discussed.

The roadblocks Mitchell created to stall the rate hikes are partly to blame for the cuts required this year. Other factors — such as expenses from the active storm season and shortfalls from the COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on tax revenues — also contributed to the shortfall. But the 11-month delay in the rate hikes were blamed for about $300,000 of the budget shortfall.

“More than 90 percent of the cuts are coming from Public Works,” said Chief Administrative Officer Avis Gutekunst. “We’re cutting back on overtime, on road repairs, on supplies. You need to realize that, as you talk about this budget, there are no longer any call outs for after-hours work for sewer repair. If a resident has an after hours emergency, they need to call a plumber first.”

Even with the cuts and the reduction in services, the budget is barely afloat. The final document as adopted shows the city ending the 2021-2022 fiscal year with $106,000 in its accounts — a razor-thin margin for a municipality with a budget of more than $6 million.

On the positive side, the city is still expecting reimbursements from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for storm expenses. It is also anticipating some funding under the CARES Act, but Prosper warned the council members not to put too much faith in that cash infusion making a difference.

“Just because we will get that CARES Act money doesn’t mean it’s going to be blue skies,” Prosper said. “There are some very tight constraints on how that money can be spent.”

The council was also scheduled to go into executive session to discuss the job performance of Electric Department lineman Cassius Bourda, but the item was tabled when council members learned that Bourda had turned in his letter of retirement.

Bourda, who had previously been the subject of a special meeting as his trial on a charge of sexual assault approached, was relieved of his duties last week after he reported to a call for service in an impaired state. That incident had precipitated the item on Monday night’s agenda, and his retirement now puts the Electric Department short of qualified linemen..

“All extra positions, including extra lineman, are cut from the budget,” Gutekunst said. “When we cut back, we cut back. We are going to have to monitor this and really stick to it.”

“You have a fiduciary responsibility to pass a balanced budget,” Kolder said. “And it is a legal requirement. You cannot adopt a deficit budget.”

Prosper acknowledged that the cuts were severe, but he also noted that the newly enacted rate increases, which went into effect in May, could allow for the council to adjust some of the spending cuts as the year goes on.

“We really can’t afford to run the city like this,” Prosper said. “I think the council should bring up, at our next meeting, what we want to do. We can pass this, but we can amend it. We can make some small changes as time goes on that make a big difference.”