County Looks At 2006 Budgets
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
The county council heard budget requests from 12 department heads Monday for general fund expenditures of more than $15 million.
Wage committee member Brad Tandy said he and councilman Larry Teghtmeyer and county commissioner Brad Jackson approved an across-the-board 3 percent salary increase for all full-time employees; no increase for part-time employee pay or increases in stipends for appointed board members (like the area plan commission and board of zoning appeals).
Tandy said the county still doesn't know how much the county option income tax revenues will be although the wage committee recommendations were based on a projected increase.
The committee further recommended that two full-time patrolmen, whose salaries are provided through a grant, be retained. The sheriff's department also will be allowed to hire a full-time cook for the work release program.
The health department's request to increase the well child coordinator's pay from $9.27 per hour to $10.27 per hour was approved.
A request by superior courts II and III for a bailiff was recommended along with an additional counselor for the county's alcohol and drug program. The counselor's salary will be paid with user fees.
For the probation department, it was noted one adult officer and two youth officers would be going up on the pay scale and these increases also would be paid through user fees.
With the prospect that budgets can always be cut, department heads and elected officials presented salary increases of about 10 percent for advertising purposes.
The following budgets were approved with final figures expected to reflect the three percent increases recommended by the wage committee:
• Treasurer Kent Adams' request to add two full-time employees was approved, but another full-time position (that has not been filled) was cut. The office's part-time budget was cut from $34,350 to $10,000 and overtime pay was cut from $7,500 to $2,000.
Adams included in his budget an expenditure for "lock box technology." The program collects tax payments on the Internet or payments mailed into the office, opens, processes and deposits those funds that day. It is anticipated to be a revenue-generating program because monies are instantly recorded.
With council approval, the $30,000 program could begin as early as the fall collection. Payments will still be taken in the treasurer's office and at local banks.
• The area plan budget was approved at $284,870, with salaries for seven employees, and the edition of a global positioning system at a cost of $5,000. Plan director Dan Richard's budget represented a $26,666 increase, or 10.13 percent more than 2005.
• Highway department head Dennis Pletcher presented four budgets with drastic cuts to the road maintenance accounts. More than $700,000 was cut from the motor-vehicle-highway maintenance and repair budget to purchase bituminous (asphalt) materials; and $80,000 was taken from bridge repair.
Pletcher said the county will fill potholes and do little or no paving in 2006. Usually the department buys a couple of new trucks each year; instead of trucks, mowing tractors will be bought.
The highway department supports 38 employees.
MVH revenue has flat-lined in the last year, Pletcher said, and he expects a 3 to 4 percent decrease overall in 2006.
The four highway budgets - MVH general, MVH maintenance, local roads and streets and cumulative bridge totaled $5,956,486 down $327,924 from the 2005 budget of $6,284,410.
• Joan Younce of the Purdue Cooperative Extension Office presented a budget 3.63 percent higher than last year. For 2006, she requested $177,867.
• Bob Weaver presented several budgets: county health for $586,346; health maintenance for $87,580; prenatal for $14,535 and well child fund for $44,100.
Weaver said he plans to order 2,000 flu vaccines this year, offering them for $10 per dose.
• The emergency management budget was given as $85,710, an increase of 9.65 percent, according to director Ed Rock's figures.
Rock also presented a budget of $14,560, the same as last year, for the local emergency planning budget.
• The clerk's budget, presented by Sharon Christner, was 13.42 percent higher than last year, coming in at $607,499. The clerk's office employs 20 people full-time.
Christner also presented a county election board budget of $142,130, which was $16,212 more than the 2004 budget of $125,918, the last time an election was held.
The voter registration budget was $19,375.
• John Sadler presented the coroner's budget, which showed a $30,000 increase for x-ray and lab expenses at $40,000, up from $10,000. The 2006 projected budget was given as $67,695, a $10,407 increase over 2005.
• Costs for the surveyor's office were given as $122,751 an increase of 9.21 percent, according to county surveyor Dick Kemper. The drainage board budget also increased from $136,229 in 2005 to $147,361 for 2006.
• Sheriff Aaron Rovenstine showed the council several budgets: $1,814,433 for the jail, with 35 full-time employees; $2,605,088 for the sheriff's department, with 48 full-time employees; $44,000 for law enforcement forfeitures; $64,522 for county corrections (the salaries of two jail security officers); $95,164 for the homeland security grant (which employs two patrolmen); and $105,830 for the AD grant (also for two officers, supplies and equipment).
• Chief dispatcher Tom Brindle presented a budget of $1,197,825 for central dispatch salaries and operations.
However, the council isn't quite sure how the department will end up being funded. Most of the costs for salaries and equipment are paid through the 911 levies on "land-line" telephones. That rate hasn't been increased in 19 years. In the last few years, though, more than 15,000 land-lines have been discontinued in favor of cellular phones. There are no 911 fees on cell phones. While the state imposes a fee of 64 cents on cell phones, they only share about half with the county.
Warsaw will pay $104,000 toward the salaries of three dispatchers, according to an agreement with the county. This leaves the salaries of two more former Warsaw dispatchers to be absorbed by the county. The 15 dispatchers would receive an income of about $37,058 per year.
• Maintenance supervisor Don Taylor presented a budget of $870,450 for salaries, supplies and equipment.
County council members are John Kinsey, Harold Jones, Charlene Knispel, Tom Anglin, Larry Teghtmeyer, Bob Sanders and Brad Tandy. [[In-content Ad]]
The county council heard budget requests from 12 department heads Monday for general fund expenditures of more than $15 million.
Wage committee member Brad Tandy said he and councilman Larry Teghtmeyer and county commissioner Brad Jackson approved an across-the-board 3 percent salary increase for all full-time employees; no increase for part-time employee pay or increases in stipends for appointed board members (like the area plan commission and board of zoning appeals).
Tandy said the county still doesn't know how much the county option income tax revenues will be although the wage committee recommendations were based on a projected increase.
The committee further recommended that two full-time patrolmen, whose salaries are provided through a grant, be retained. The sheriff's department also will be allowed to hire a full-time cook for the work release program.
The health department's request to increase the well child coordinator's pay from $9.27 per hour to $10.27 per hour was approved.
A request by superior courts II and III for a bailiff was recommended along with an additional counselor for the county's alcohol and drug program. The counselor's salary will be paid with user fees.
For the probation department, it was noted one adult officer and two youth officers would be going up on the pay scale and these increases also would be paid through user fees.
With the prospect that budgets can always be cut, department heads and elected officials presented salary increases of about 10 percent for advertising purposes.
The following budgets were approved with final figures expected to reflect the three percent increases recommended by the wage committee:
• Treasurer Kent Adams' request to add two full-time employees was approved, but another full-time position (that has not been filled) was cut. The office's part-time budget was cut from $34,350 to $10,000 and overtime pay was cut from $7,500 to $2,000.
Adams included in his budget an expenditure for "lock box technology." The program collects tax payments on the Internet or payments mailed into the office, opens, processes and deposits those funds that day. It is anticipated to be a revenue-generating program because monies are instantly recorded.
With council approval, the $30,000 program could begin as early as the fall collection. Payments will still be taken in the treasurer's office and at local banks.
• The area plan budget was approved at $284,870, with salaries for seven employees, and the edition of a global positioning system at a cost of $5,000. Plan director Dan Richard's budget represented a $26,666 increase, or 10.13 percent more than 2005.
• Highway department head Dennis Pletcher presented four budgets with drastic cuts to the road maintenance accounts. More than $700,000 was cut from the motor-vehicle-highway maintenance and repair budget to purchase bituminous (asphalt) materials; and $80,000 was taken from bridge repair.
Pletcher said the county will fill potholes and do little or no paving in 2006. Usually the department buys a couple of new trucks each year; instead of trucks, mowing tractors will be bought.
The highway department supports 38 employees.
MVH revenue has flat-lined in the last year, Pletcher said, and he expects a 3 to 4 percent decrease overall in 2006.
The four highway budgets - MVH general, MVH maintenance, local roads and streets and cumulative bridge totaled $5,956,486 down $327,924 from the 2005 budget of $6,284,410.
• Joan Younce of the Purdue Cooperative Extension Office presented a budget 3.63 percent higher than last year. For 2006, she requested $177,867.
• Bob Weaver presented several budgets: county health for $586,346; health maintenance for $87,580; prenatal for $14,535 and well child fund for $44,100.
Weaver said he plans to order 2,000 flu vaccines this year, offering them for $10 per dose.
• The emergency management budget was given as $85,710, an increase of 9.65 percent, according to director Ed Rock's figures.
Rock also presented a budget of $14,560, the same as last year, for the local emergency planning budget.
• The clerk's budget, presented by Sharon Christner, was 13.42 percent higher than last year, coming in at $607,499. The clerk's office employs 20 people full-time.
Christner also presented a county election board budget of $142,130, which was $16,212 more than the 2004 budget of $125,918, the last time an election was held.
The voter registration budget was $19,375.
• John Sadler presented the coroner's budget, which showed a $30,000 increase for x-ray and lab expenses at $40,000, up from $10,000. The 2006 projected budget was given as $67,695, a $10,407 increase over 2005.
• Costs for the surveyor's office were given as $122,751 an increase of 9.21 percent, according to county surveyor Dick Kemper. The drainage board budget also increased from $136,229 in 2005 to $147,361 for 2006.
• Sheriff Aaron Rovenstine showed the council several budgets: $1,814,433 for the jail, with 35 full-time employees; $2,605,088 for the sheriff's department, with 48 full-time employees; $44,000 for law enforcement forfeitures; $64,522 for county corrections (the salaries of two jail security officers); $95,164 for the homeland security grant (which employs two patrolmen); and $105,830 for the AD grant (also for two officers, supplies and equipment).
• Chief dispatcher Tom Brindle presented a budget of $1,197,825 for central dispatch salaries and operations.
However, the council isn't quite sure how the department will end up being funded. Most of the costs for salaries and equipment are paid through the 911 levies on "land-line" telephones. That rate hasn't been increased in 19 years. In the last few years, though, more than 15,000 land-lines have been discontinued in favor of cellular phones. There are no 911 fees on cell phones. While the state imposes a fee of 64 cents on cell phones, they only share about half with the county.
Warsaw will pay $104,000 toward the salaries of three dispatchers, according to an agreement with the county. This leaves the salaries of two more former Warsaw dispatchers to be absorbed by the county. The 15 dispatchers would receive an income of about $37,058 per year.
• Maintenance supervisor Don Taylor presented a budget of $870,450 for salaries, supplies and equipment.
County council members are John Kinsey, Harold Jones, Charlene Knispel, Tom Anglin, Larry Teghtmeyer, Bob Sanders and Brad Tandy. [[In-content Ad]]