Council Adopts 2019 BudgetKosciusko County Council approved its 2019 budget, solid waste budget and salary ordinance at its monthly meeting Thursday night.
Funds budgeted for next year total $43,723,432, an increase of $2,241,806 or 5.4 percent over the 2018 budget. Council President Sue Ann Mitchell thanked everyone involved for their work on the labor-intensive process.
The remainder of the meeting was dedicated to additional appropriations and transfers of funds within departments. A motion was made by council Vice President Jon Garber to have supervisors look to transfer funds within their departments before asking for additional appropriations. The motion carried.
Highway Supervisor Scott Tilden got additional appropriations of $100,000 for bridge replacement, $40,000 for bridge inspection and $40,000 for a consulting engineer.
Tilden said the emergency work done last month on the east end of Armstrong Road, when a culvert collapsed, left them short in these areas. Repair work on that culvert was in the 2019 budget, and Mitchell said those accounts will effectively balance themselves out.
Tilden also had appropriations approved for an insurance reimbursement and repairs and maintenance totaling $13,416.
Sheriff’s Department Communications Director and Fatal & Alcohol Crash Team member Rick Shepherd asked the council to approve $5,000 for additional drunk driver enforcement, including checkpoints. The council approved his request.
Sheriff Rocky Goshert presented his commissary report, and asked for a $100,000 appropriation for inmate food. He said the jail is housing about 100 more inmates than was projected last year. He also asked for $709 for travel reimbursements and $4,562 for repairs and maintenance after a department vehicle was in a crash last month. All the requests were approved.
Goshert, along with Emergency Management Director Ed Rock, announced the county’s grant request for the School Guard program was granted. The software will allow school personnel to push a button to call for help from law enforcement, and the call will go to any officer nearby, regardless of department.
Deputy Mike Mulligan had state grant money for the Jail Chemical Addiction Program added to the department’s budget. He said the program should begin Oct. 1 with female inmates before expanding into other areas of the jail population.
Other appropriations and transfers included:
• The prosecutor’s office for $12,746.12 for the VOCA?program, and two transfers for employee wages.
• Grant money received for Fire District 2 totaling $61,860.
• A new copier for the health department for $11,454.
• Funds for court-appointed attorneys and public defender services totaling $150,000.
The county council’s next meeting will be at 7 p.m. Oct. 11 at the courthouse.
