Budget advances

The county is one step closer to finalizing its budget for next year.

Jay County Council approved its 2024 budget on a first reading and approved an ordinance modifying local income tax rates Wednesday. (Taxpayers will not see an increase in taxes taken out of their paychecks.)

The 2024 budget comes in at just under $22.5 million, up by nearly $1.64 million for the current year. It includes $10.7 million in the general fund, which increased about $1 million from this year’s general fund total.

Other major fund totals are listed at $3.32 million for Jay County Commissioners, $3 million for Jay County Highway Department — the department also had an additional $1.85 million from the state in the Local Motor Vehicle Highway restricted fund — $1.85 million for Jay Emergency Medical Service, $1.76 million for Jay County Jail and $1.29 million for Jay County Sheriff’s Office.

Increases to next year’s budget are largely because of inflation, raises and small changes across the budget.

Around $500,000 of the increase is designated for raises, which include the addition of two new positions at Jay County Health Department for about $92,000. (Jay County Health Department is receiving enhanced state funding next year. Environmentalist and administrator Heath Butz budgeted $209,000 from the state funding for 2024.)

Raises are mostly set between 2% and 8% with the following outliers: the health department’s food inspector at a 25% raise, council members at a 20% raise and commissioners, the coroner and veterans affairs officer at 10% raises. (Each of those positions’ pay is at least 20% or more — council is 44% — lower than the external midpoint rate for their positions, according to information compiled by consulting firm Waggoner, Irwin, Scheele and Associates.)

Council made a few cuts during the budgeting process this year, namely $340,000 from the commissioners’ budget. Council members agreed to cut $300,000 from the commissioners’ fund for contractual services Aug. 23 and another $40,000 — council vice president Faron Parr dissenting — from the same fund Sept. 13.

Council member Matt Minnich noted earlier this month the cuts would put $240,000 in the fund for next year, giving $140,000 for a contract with Jay County Development Corporation and $100,000 for a contract with East Central Indiana Regional Planning District.

Council approved the budget Wednesday on a 5-1 vote, with council member Harold Towell dissenting and Minnich absent.

Towell later explained he had not agreed to several items in the budget and felt he couldn’t approve the budget with that in mind. (In the past few months, Towell has questioned various aspects of the budget, most notably the commissioners’ fund. He dissented in votes associated with employee raises and increasing the fund for animal control with Jay County Humane Society to $66,325. He also voted in favor of cutting Jay County Country Living's budget in half, but the motion did not pass.)

Council also approved an ordinance Wednesday adjusting local income tax rates. 

The ordinance adds an emergency medical service rate of 0.15% and reduces the certified shares rate to 1.25%. (Jay County auditor Emily Franks suggested the change, which essentially relocates a portion of property tax dollars into the county general fund.) As of 2022, it’s an option for county fiscal bodies that provide emergency medical services for all local units in the county and pay 100% of the costs to provide those services. 

Also, per state law, the county had to adjust its property tax credit allocation categories and remove the qualified residential property tax credit. In an effort to keep tax credits nearly the same, the county put approximately 60% of the proposed revenue for property tax credits into the 1% allocation type category and 40% into the residential property category.

The adjustment will put an extra $400,000 in the general fund budget.

Council member Cindy Bracy noted the adjustment acts as a temporary solution to the county’s deficit budget. (Several funds are continuing to operate in deficit in 2024, including the county general fund at more than $391,500 deficit.)

“That allows us to operate on less of a deficit, which is nice, but we still don’t have a solution for making more money yet, right?” she asked.

Council president Jeanne Houchins said Jay County would need to raise its assessed value. Bracy added the county would benefit from having more residents and more people working here and paying taxes.

Franks added the adjustment “gets (Jay County) over the hump.”