Budget Committee Recommends No Property Tax Increase for Next Fiscal Year
The Jefferson County Budget Committee completed their portion of the budget process and will take a balanced budget before the full County Commission in June. Despite facing a $1.2 million dollar deficit coming into the May 23rd meeting, this year’s budget proposal will not include an increase in property tax for the fiscal year 2016/17. Jefferson County Finance Director Potts offered a recommendation of using a little more than $200,000 in funds that were not budgeted by the Jefferson County Department of Education but were available due to the increased worth of a penny( which allowed the Budget Committee to allocated two less pennies worth of property tax to the DOE) to go toward the total deficit. He also suggested that a portion of over funding for retirement, which was identified by the State, also just in excess of $200,000 could be applied to the deficit. The remainder of the deficit will be covered on the short term by hospital reserve funds which will be replaced when the current year’s roll over funds, around $750,000, become available.
The Committee addressed a request for a vehicle for the County Technology Department and gave the go ahead, with a Motion from Committee Member Beeler and 2nd from Committee Member Kesterson, to use up to $15,000 from fund balance on a used vehicle. Committee Members declined to approved an additional position for Circuit Court Clerk Penny Murphy citing deadline issues with the request. Several items of general financial housekeeping on both the school and county sides of the budget were approved.
In a Called Meeting of the Jefferson County Commission, the full body approved the recommendations of the Budget Committee for a request from the Jefferson County Sanitation Commission for purchase of a parcel of land using fund 207 and a request from the Department of Education to accept a non-matching grant from Niswonger Foundation, as well as $1,320 from a private citizen, for the Summer School Stem Program.
Due to the expediency of approval of the fiscal year 2016/17 budget, the Budget Committee will return to their regular meeting schedule.
