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COUNTY APPROVES BUDGET, TURNS BACK BORROWING MEASURE
Thursday, November 13th, 2008 -- 10:23 am
Posted by Riley Hebert-News Director
The Clark County Board of Supervisors approved a $59.3-million spending plan last night.
The budget hearing was the quickest in recent memory with only one citizen speaking. And even that speech, by perennial budget critic Bill Elmhorst of the Town of York, seemed somewhat muted from past critiques.
He did note the county would eventually have to come to terms with their shrinking fund balances.
"I would suggest you seriously look at privatizing the Clark County Health Care Center," Elmhorst said, claiming half of all Clark County employees work at CCHC.
"I didn't say close it, because, right away, people get all bent out of shape that you're going to throw the old people out on the streets. We're talking about privatization. Get that off the county payroll," Elmhorst said.
BORROWING MEASURE FALLS SHORT
The only real drama came when supervisors fell one vote short of the ¾-majority needed to pass a borrowing resolution.
If approved, the county would have borrowed $600,000 from a state trust fund to repave an additional five miles in 2009.
The borrowing is an exception to the state-imposed levy limit. If approved, the proposed tax rate would have increased 34-cents, but would still have been less than the current year’s rate.
TWO AMENDMENTS
The board made two small adjustments to the proposed plan.
The first adjusted revenues and expenditures to account for $300,000 of federal money coming through the county for the reconstruction of a dam in Dorchester; the other cut $50,000 from Clark County Economic Development and reduced the amount of the money expected from the half-percent county sales tax.
In the end, the board approved $59.3-million budget. $11.9-million will come from property taxpayers. The tax rate is projected at $6.67; the lowest tax rate since 1988 thanks in part to a $140-million increase in property values.
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