Lowndes County residents will pay the same in ad valorem taxes next year that they pay now, and county employees will receive a raise in October.
Supervisors passed the county’s 2014-15 fiscal year budget Monday and set a millage rate of 86.72 for the county and school district following a public hearing. That’s the same rate the county currently has.
Of that, 38.01 mills goes to the county for general operating expenses, 2 mills go to East Mississippi Community College and the rest goes to the school district.
The budget year begins Oct. 1.
The budget projects $39,149,802 in revenue, $16,625,706 of which will come from ad valorem taxes. In order to avoid raising taxes, supervisors agreed to operate with a projected $560,000 deficit and make up for any shortfalls at the end of the fiscal year by going into its $2 million reserve fund.
Two factors led to the projected deficit, county administrator Ralph Billingsley said. The county will have to pay $481,000 in debt service to the Rural Development Authority after borrowing $13 million to purchase land west of the Golden Triangle Regional Airport for prospective industrial development.
The other is approving a 50-cents-an-hour raise for all county employees except deputies with Lowndes County Sheriff’s Department and county Emergency 911 employees, who will receive a raise of 75 cents an hour. That is a $381,000 expenditure, Billingsley said.
The only amendment to the budget as proposed was to set aside an additional $25,000 in the county’s general fund to purchase two vans for the Columbus Lowndes Recreation Authority. Supervisors voted to do so.
This was agreed upon after CLRA Director Roger Short informed supervisors of cutbacks he and board members had made in the operation’s budget, including rescinding raises for employees.
District 5 supervisor Leroy Brooks proposed purchasing the vehicles.
“The vans they have at the park are probably so old and decrepit that it’s probably embarrassing to drive them down the street,” Brooks said. “Over the years, those vans have really been an integral part of enhancing programs for seniors and children to get them from one site to another to allow them to do a host of things.”
District 4 supervisor Jeff Smith wanted to add another $14,000 to staff a part-time manager for the Plum Grove Community Center.
“That’s an active community center,” Smith said. “It’s way out in the middle of almost nowhere in terms of distance, so those people depend on that community center.”
Brooks said the center has been operated by a volunteer for “past couple of years.”
“It’s just not a fair process of allocating public funds when you have people working for free at one facility and other facilities they’re being paid for the same function,” he said.
Board president and District 1 supervisor Harry Sanders said hiring for a part-time position was a decision CLRA had to make.
“They’re an autonomous organization, and this board should not go and try to dictate to them where they need to put employees and what they need to do,” Sanders said. “They haven’t ever asked, and when I’ve gone and talked to them about it, they don’t want to do that. We can’t tell those folks what to do.”
Short said it would be difficult for him to go back to his employees after having taken their pay increases away to hire someone CLRA has not had in a paid position.
“That would be a hard sell for us,” Short said.
After a motion for the $25,000 addition to what was already proposed on the budget passed, Smith made a motion to add another $14,000 for the part-time position. Sanders said he would be opposed to the motion.
“Roger just got up there and told you that it’s going to cause a problem with the rest of his employees,” Sanders said.
“Just vote it down,” Smith replied. “That’s the democratic way to do it.”
Supervisors voted Smith’s motion down 3-2 with Brooks being the only supporter.
Nathan Gregory covers city and county government for The Dispatch.
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