And you thought your cell phone bill was taxing.
With the use of cell phones and other communication devices viewed as increasingly necessary in public and private sector operations, it’s no wonder annual cell phone costs for the City of Hollister and San Benito County—picked up by the taxpayers—have ballooned to a combined six-figure amount in the most recent fiscal year.
San Benito County’s monthly bill with Verizon averaged $7,061 for 174 cell phone lines assigned to employees in various departments, according to information provided by Sara Fontanos, a management analyst for the county, in response to a public records request submitted by the Free Lance. That would come to an annual, average cost of $84,732, although the county did not provide an annual total.
The City of Hollister’s Director of Administrative Services Brett Miller responded to the same request. The city’s cell phone costs are broken down into two categories—the number of actual cell phones along with associated lines and then separate, flat stipends that some employees receive.
There are 79 physical cell phone lines used by city employees, and the total cost for those in 2014-15 through a Verizon agreement was $26,958, according to Miller. Additionally, 15 employees receive the stipends. The total cost for those was $7,200 last fiscal year, bringing the sum for city cell phone costs to $34,158.
Overall, about 66 percent of Hollister employees receive a city cell phone or stipend, while about 41 percent of county employees had a cell line.
Those are just wireless bills, which are scattered across departmental budgets and don’t have their own, general line item in either government entity’s general-fund budget. Neither wireless total includes traditional telecom costs for phone services.
As for the distribution of those cell phones or stipends, it apparently reaches a wide variety of departments in the two municipalities.
In the county, however, 85 of the 174 cell phone lines are assigned to just one department—health and human services—with the total monthly cost at $4,332, or 61 percent of the total county wireless tab.
Health and Human Services Director James Rydingsword on Tuesday mentioned how many department staff members, such as social workers and managers, must communicate from the field.
“We issue cell phones to staff who need them,” he said.
Cell Phones By The Numbers
$84,732: County’s annual total for cell phones in 2014-15
$34,158: Hollister’s annual total for cell phones in 2014-15
94: Number of city lines/stipends in 2014-15
174: Number of county lines in 2014-15
$40: Monthly stipends for 15 employees
427: County employees budgeted
142: City employees budgeted
$39m: County general fund budget
$18m: City general fund budget
