Budget includes lower tax rate
By Steve Herring
Published in News on May 25, 2016 12:14 PM
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News-Argus/STEVE HERRING
Wayne County Commissioner Wayne Aycock highlights pages in the $148,292,780 general fund budget proposal.
Wayne County commissioners Tuesday morning took the wraps off a $148,292,780 general fund budget proposal that would reduce the tax rate from 66.50 to 66.35 cents per $100 of property value.
The proposal, that does not include any fee increases, is slightly down from the current general fund budget of $152,863,773.
Despite the slight tax rate decrease, local property tax revenues are expected to grow by 2.7 percent over last year -- $51,978,000 to $53,289,610 -- because of growth in the tax base.
Local property taxes account for 35.9 percent of all general fund revenues.
The proposal assumes the economy will improve somewhat for all of the fiscal year. Register of deeds filings are showing an increase, as are building permits.
Also, the growth rate for sales tax and property taxes have shown an improvement in recent years, County Manager George Wood said.
There is only one change in the fire district tax rates. Saulston has asked to increase from 5.48 cents to 6 cents per $100 of property for office space expansion.
Provisions are made in the draft budget for bonuses and merit pay increases for county employees.
It also adds personnel including 10 detention officers for the new Carey Winders Detention Center that will open this fall.
Also, Wood said that instead of budgeting nearly $1 million to pay to house inmates in other county jails because of jail overcrowding that the proposal has $900,000 in revenue.
Once the new jail opens the county will have more than 400 jail beds. That means instead of sending inmates to other counties that Wayne County can now house inmates from other counties at a cost of $50 per inmate per day.
Other additions include a staff attorney and paralegal to handle the county increasing legal workload and a communication director that would be shared with Goldsboro.
The budget discussion did not delve into details of what those positions will cost.
But under the public affairs budget the salary line item would increase from $77,000 to $118,000 and overall the department's budget would increase from $147,350 to $251,326.
In the county attorney department, salaries would more than double from $100,550 to $213,708 and the total budget would grow from $206,975 to $354,494.
The proposal provides $20,357,123, including a supplemental appropriation of $131,734, for current expenses for Wayne County Public Schools.
As promised earlier by commissioner, the budget would provide $750,000 for Wayne County Public Schools' technology plan.
The $750,000 includes a one-time appropriation of $600,000 to jumpstart the plan and $150,000 earmarked for technology.
Other school funding includes: Edgewood Developmental School, $587,000; Wayne Initiative for School Health (WISH), $170,000; and mobile pre-k bus, teachers and teacher assistants, $110,000.
It provides $766,722 for school resource officers. The schools reimburse the county $359,883. Another $184,000 is reimbursed from a state grant.
Of major concern is whether the General Assembly will take even more in lottery funds that have been going for school construction or debt service, Wood said.
The proposal assumes that all full-time employees working at least 40 hours a week will receive a $500 bonus. All part-time employees will receive pro-rated bonuses.
All employees will be evaluated in July and August and be eligible for merit increase.
The budget draft includes $600,000 to cover those increases.
Another $300,000 will be used to adjust some underpaid positions in the Department of Social Services.
Also, employees who achieve certain work-relation certification will be eligible for 2.5 percent salary increase.
There is no increase in insurance premiums for employees.
Wood said all county departments had been asked to make three percent reductions from last year. Most were able to do so, if not more, he said.
For some of the smaller departments that was not possible, Wood said.
Since county departments were asked to make cuts it was only fair that outside agencies requesting funding do the same, Wood said.
Funding for those agencies, mostly nonprofits, has been a sticking point for the current board since it was first elected nearly four years ago.
Those agencies have been cut, in some cases drastically, and some commissioners have said they favor eliminating them completely.
However, several remain in this year's budget proposal.
WATCH had requested $220,000, but the draft budget retains the current funding level of $110,000.
WATCH had received $220,000 as recently as the 204-15 budget.
Literacy Connections, another favorite target of cuts, is actually getting an increase from $221,150 to $225,664. The increase includes $17,784 for salaries and wages for extra help -- an increase of $1,584 over the current budget.
For the most part the additional $4,500 overall is tied to salaries and benefits.
Funding for other outside agencies includes:
Old Waynesborough Commission, $58,950 up from $35,000, but less than the $65,000 requested.
Goldsborough Bridge Battlefield, $10,000, the same as 2015-16.
Wayne County Historical Association, $20,000 (no change although $25,000 had been requested).
Arts Council of Wayne County, $24,250, down from $25,000 ($30,000 was requested).
The budget is open for public inspection at the county manager's office on the fourth floor of the Wayne County Courthouse Annex.
Commissioners will hold a public hearing at 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, June 7, in their meeting room on the fourth floor of the courthouse annex.
Two work sessions are planned as well.
The first at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, June 14, will focus on internal county departments.
The second, at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, June 15, will look at funding for outside agencies.
The budget could be adopted on either June 21 or June 30.