By HOLLY GASKILL
After balancing inflation with budget constrictions, the county council has reached a preliminary consensus on the 2023 budget.
The council agreed on a general treatment of employee raises — a $3,000 flat raise for deputies and an eight percent raise for all other county employees whose salaries are determined by the county council.
They decided this was the fairest to employees while still taking into consideration the varied work of each position.
This treatment will not apply to community corrections, who agreed to absorb the cost of raises, as well as the commissioners, council, and both the clerk and auditor’s offices.
The clerk and auditor’s offices had received raises of $3,000 earlier this year for their ability to take on the work of lost positions. They will both receive a three percent raise.
Commissioner President Mike Vanover requested the three commissioner salaries be made equal. The role of the president had been previously raised above the other two salaries to compensate for the additional responsibilities of the presidential role.
Consequently, it was agreed all three commissioners would receive a salary equivalent to the two commissioners’ 2022 salary with a five percent raise.
In previous discussions, the county council agreed to forego their raises to help budget for the county. During Tuesday’s meeting, council members Vicki Andrews and Scott Elzey expressed their dissent to the decision.
“I’m fine with (not getting a raise) — it’s not that much money,” Andrews said. “However, I feel like we need to make sure that we stay (in a range) that looks attractive enough for other people to run, because I know that we’re probably not going to run forever and we want people who are qualified to handle this budget after us.”
“Vicki, I agree with you,” Elzey said. “I’ve spent a lot of hours dwelling on that exact topic.”
Ultimately, the council agreed upon their proposed 2023 budget 7-0. The county council does not plan to meet again unless auditor Lisa McCormick determines that the final numbers from their changes do not reflect their preliminary numbers.
The public hearing for the budget will be 7 p.m. Sept. 6.; adoption will be 7 p.m. Oct. 4.
holly@news-banner.com
