July 2, 2008

3 percent pay hike sought for county employees

County budget hearings for the 2009 financial year began on a pleasantly tame note on Tuesday evening, with the first of the county government agencies bringing their wish lists before the Wells County Council.

There were no unexpected surprises for council members Peter Cole, Karolyna Farling, Jim Van Winkle, Todd Mahnensmith, LeRoy Cramer, Michael Kracium and Jim Oswalt on opening night, although council president Cole did note that this is the third consecutive year, that due to lack of information provided by state government, the county has been faced with preparing its budget without knowing exactly how much money it will have to spend.

Council members will therefore have to keep a tight rein on expenditure once again, and “hope it all fits” when the final numbers are produced.

Presentations were made by the County Assessor’s Office, the Extension Office, the County Auditor’s office, the County Clerk’s office and the Election Board.

Department heads are requesting a standard 3 percent pay increase for government workers again this year. So far, postage and travel (due to rising oil prices) are the other two areas of main concern.

The Assessor’s office is actually hoping for a slight budget reduction in 2009, due to the elimination of township assessor positions. County Assessor Nilah Aschliman did however include a salary for one additional staff member, having already proposed to council that Harrison Township Assessor Becky Johnson be appointed to her full time staff to assist with the increasing workload in the office.

Oswalt asked Aschliman whether her office is monitoring mobile home sales for property tax assessments, as there have been issues in this area over recent years. Aschliman advised they are being monitored with effect from this year, and complete records, including photos, are being recorded by her office.

While the Extension Office proposes to keep its mileage for 2009 at 30,374 miles, rising gas prices have resulted in the need to request an additional $1,113 for the coming year. This would allow for an increase in the mileage rate offered by the county for employees to rise from 45 cents per mile to 51 cents per mile.

It was agreed that under current conditions, it is impossible to accurately assess the effect of gas prices over the coming year.

The office also faces slight increases in service costs for office equipment, such as photocopiers and printers.

County Auditor Laura Brubaker advised her biggest budget headache comes from office supplies, such as paper. She advised that she is working with Courthouse Custodian Bobbie Studebaker to “organize” a storage room somewhere in the courthouse, that would enable departments to order in bulk to get a cheaper rate, and store excess supplies until they are required.

County Clerk Beth Davis advised that her office expects to actually spend less on travel in 2009, as she plans to attend fewer conferences out of town. The office however, will be hit by postage costs.

Davis also presented the budget requests on behalf of the Wells County Election Board.

This board faces a substantial increase in maintenance costs for its computer software, due to an increase in rates by the suppliers. This cost will jump from $5,500 in 2008 to $9,500 in 2009. Davis advised that this is not entirely the service providers’ fault, as the state now requires higher level of certification for these people, and their costs have increased as a result.

Davis noted that although 2009 is not an election year, the changes implemented by state officials relating to building projects for schools means that Northern Wells Community Schools may be facing a referendum in 2009, which will mean the election board essentially has to provide full election facilities for all polling places within the school system.

Northern Wells officials have not yet decided whether this referendum will proceed, so Davis has included it in her budget “just in case.”

The budget hearings will continue next Tuesday, July 8, commencing at 6 p.m. in the Carnegie Annex on W. Washington Street.

frank@news-banner.com

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