OSKALOOSA — The Mahaska County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the county’s fiscal year 2010 budget at its meeting Monday.
They held a public hearing on the budget Monday before voting.
Mahaska County will have a budget that includes $16.3 million in revenue and $17.7 million in expenditures. At the beginning of the 2010 budget, the county will have a beginning fund balance of $8.8 million.
Property valuation in Mahaska County has grown $32 million since this past year and is at $826,076,747, Board Chairman Lawrence Rouw said. So, the tax burden will decrease a little as there is more property valuation in the county to generate revenue, he said.
There were a few budget issues discussed during the public hearing.
The supervisors discussed the possibility of reducing the Conservation Board budget by about $41,000. However, members of the Mahaska County Conservation Board said they have interviewed two candidates for a full-time conservation board director. The state requires a county to have a full-time conservation director.
As a result, on a 1-2 vote supervisors Willie VanWeelden and Greg Gordy voted to not cut the budget to accommodate the hiring of a new full-time conservation board director.
An audience member noticed that there appears to be a $1 million decrease in the Secondary Roads budget for the upcoming year, and was concerned that would affect county gravel roads. The Roadway Maintenance Program decreases from $3.6 million in the 20009 budget to $2.8 million in the current re-estimated budget and $2.6 million in the 2010 budget.
VanWeelden said road projects affect that part of the budget. Rouw said that the Eveland Access bridge project is being paid for this year and next year. Gordy said the bridge project is being funded with federal dollars and as the money enters and leaves county coffers, it will affect the budget.
“It does not affect county rock roads,” Rouw said.
For mental health spending, the county budgeted $2.8 million for programs, a little more than the $2.6 million spent in the current re-estimated budget. The county will levy for $1.2 million and receive $708,000 from the state to fund programs.
Herald Editor Duane Nollen can be reached by email at oskynews@oskyherald.com
Local News
March 10, 2010
County supervisors approve budget
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