Council makes non-binding budget review

For the second year now, the Jay County Council quickly completed a non-binding review of the county's outside taxing units.

The council is required to review the budgets of townships, towns, libraries and the Jay County Solid Waste District, even though they have no jurisdiction over those taxing units. The council could make suggestions on those budgets, but the individual units have no reason to change them if they don't want to. The review does not include a review of the Jay School Corporation's budget, either.

"Tonight is one of the bigger wastes of our time," commented council president Gerald Kirby. "We have no authority to do a thing with (these budgets)."

Jay County auditor Nancy Culy said before the meeting that those budgets still have to be sent to the Department of Local Government Finance for review, where they will be cut, making the review even less relevant.

Portland clerk-treasurer Randy Geesaman and mayor Bruce Hosier made brief comments about the city of Portland's budget before the council began their approvals.

"The assessed value of the city of Portland did drop," Geesaman said, but added, "We have no intention of making the tax rate any more than we've had."

Hosier announced earlier this year that salaries for city employees will be frozen for 2010 in order to keep the city's funds healthy.

"We also try to take a responsible and prudent approach to our budget," Hosier said. "We'll be right where we anticipate we'll be."

The 2010 proposed Portland budget was presented at $6,996,338, about $620,000 more than its 2009 certified budget. That number will likely be cut pared back by the DLGF, and Geesaman said the city has left appropriate pads in the budget to make those cutbacks.

The city of Dunkirk only shows about a $4,000 growth in their budget from 2008, at $1,460,226.

The county will begin reviewing its departmental budgets next week. The council has said they will keep the budgets tight this year and will likely be trimming several departments in the process. The first county budget meeting will take place at 6 p.m. Tuesday in the commissioners' room of the courthouse.[[In-content Ad]]