In recent years budget discussions at the county supervisors’ meetings have been about doing as much as possible while spending as little as possible.
Discussions of the budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2019 – FY20 – haven’t had austerity as a theme.
The supervisors on Monday heard budget presentations from elected officials for their offices and county departments. Most budget proposals include increases, starting with salary increases recommended by the compensation board.
Sheriff Jack Williams is looking for the largest increase. The compensation board recommended a 4 percent increase for his salary; that would automatically increase the chief deputy’s salary by 4 percent. Williams’ budget includes an 8 percent wage increase for deputies, a 5 percent increase for jailers, and a 2.5 percent increase for telecommunication staff. He didn’t explain the disparity in his suggested increases or provide wage comparisons from other counties.
He included funding for an additional fulltime jailer at an estimated cost of $37,000, including overtime, and increased jail expenses related to inmate housing. Also in the budget is money to replace two vehicles, with funding for one coming from the general and the other coming from the local option sales and service tax (LOSST) fund.
Williams’ proposed budget includes general fund expenditures of $842,331, a 12.4 percent increase over the current year. The rural fund budget estimate of $478,520 is 5.2 percent less than the current year. (The supervisors expect to amend the current year budget to cover increased jail expenses and the cost of transitioning EMS.)
Williams estimates revenue in the sheriff’s office of $206,000, a slight increase. Nearly $123,000 of that is expected to come from contract law enforcement in county towns, although not all cities have signed the 28E agreements with increased rates.
The budget proposal for the auditor’s office shows a 5.8 percent increase over the current year for elections, which comes from the general supplemental fund. Those expenditures are estimated at $141,369. The budget includes the combined school/city election in November and the June 2020 primary. The schools and cities will reimburse the county for their share of the November election. Also in the budget is an 8.6 percent wage increase for deputy auditor Billie Jo Hoskins, based on the compensation board’s recommendation of an 8.6 percent increase for auditor Jane Heun.
The general fund (non-election) budget includes the salary increase for Heun. The budget proposal calls for an increase of $9,100 – 7.8 percent – over the current year.
Treasurer Katlynn Mechaelsen, only one month into her position, proposed a budget with a 0.7 percent decrease – $1,782 – in expenditures. Mechaelsen included a 2.96 percent salary increase for herself and the deputy treasurer, and 3 percent increases for the other two employees in the office. She included reductions in several line items, partly based an actual expenses from previous years. She estimated general fund expenses at $240,681 and revenues at $147,500.
County attorney Thomas Laehn, also only one month into his position, trimmed general fund expenditures by $14,510, a 5.6 percent reduction. He included a 7.34 percent salary increase for himself, as recommended by the compensation board, and a 5.5 percent increase for the office secretary/assistant. Laehn reported the increase would put that employee on the high side of average for the position as compared to other similar counties. The budget includes a salary for a part-time assistant county attorney although that position is currently vacant.
As assistant attorney Laehn transitioned the office to digital records management, yielding enough efficiency to cover all job duties with less staff time. That accounts for part of the decrease in expenses.
He mentioned the possibility of adding a part-time victim witness coordinator position, possibly combined with a part-time attorney recovery fee clerk position. That would be in a future fiscal year.
The budget for the board of supervisors, even with a recommended 3.6 percent salary increase, shows a decrease of $9,000, at $179,215. Decreased cost of labor relations services and legal/court-related services (due to the work now being done by Laehn rather than hired out) account for the decrease.
Non-elected department heads also presented budget proposals.
The environmental health budget proposed by Chuck Wenthold included a 3 percent salary increase for himself and increased estimates for postage, supplies and water tests. He also estimated increased grant revenue. Total general fund expenditures are estimated at $66,830, a 6.3 percent increase. Grant revenues are estimated to increase by $6,750, nearly 30 percent.
Michelle Fields’s budget for the drainage department included a 3 percent salary increase and a decrease in office supplies. Total general fund expenditures show an increase of $557, less than 2 percent.
Fields is also the county’s IT coordinator. She included expenses for computer hardware (virtual server) and software to replace equipment that is outdated or is no longer supported by the seller. General fund expenditures are pegged at $298,369, a net increase of more than $76,000 over the current year. (The IT budget also includes a portion of her salary with the 3 percent increase.)
Veterans services officer Michael Bierl on his first day at the job proposed estimated general fund expenditures of $42,030. That includes his wages and funding for services to veterans. The expenditures are 13.6 percent less than in the current year, due in part to the position being reduced to part-time. The county may receive $10,000 in state funding for veteran service officer costs and training.
The supervisors have yet to hear budgets for conservation, human services, general assistance, medical examiner, emergency management, ambulance, weed control, secondary roads and others.
Auditor Heun has the very large and detailed task of entering figures into budget worksheets and arriving at levy rates that would support the expenses. The supervisors’ role is to determine priorities and any reductions needed to set the final levy rates.
Also at the Monday meeting, Heun reminded the supervisors they need to act on the compensation board’s recommendation by Feb. 8 if they want to consider increases to other elected officials’ salaries separate from their own. Last year they did not meet that deadline and (by default) they received the same increase as other officials.
