Charles City draft budget proposes 7-cent tax hike

A seven-cent hike in the county’s real estate tax rate is being proposed by Charles City’s county administrator to help fund a $22.5 million budget proposal for the 2008-09 fiscal year, even though the bottom line falls below the current year’s figure.

For now, the proposed budget totals $22,476,692 compared to the current year’s figure of $23,360,856.

Administrator Jack Miniclier unveiled his budget recommendation to county Board of Supervisors members during the board’s March 25 meeting. The proposal is scheduled for public hearing on April 14 at 7 p.m. in the county government building auditorium.

Miniclier said the real estate tax raise is needed to offset declining revenues that have been running behind expenditures over the past few years and to avoid inflicting further damage to the county’s fund balance.

As of the end of 2007, the fund balance stood at $4.1 million. Five years ago, the total was $9.8 million, more than double the current amount.

County officials have been dipping into the fund to balance budgets in recent years. Miniclier said the county was looking at using $2.8 million during the current year, but thanks to belt-tightening moves employed late last year, the amount was reduced to under $1.6 million.

Miniclier, meanwhile, is proposing to take $1 million from the fund balance to balance his next year proposal.

If a seven-cent real estate increase wins approval, the current rate of 75 cents per $100 of assessed value for real property and mobile homes would rise to 82 cents. Under the current rate, a homeowner whose house is assessed at $150,000 pays $1,125 in real estate taxes. If the rate rises to 82 cents, that same homeowner would pay $1,230 or an increase of $105.

The current personal property tax rate of $3.50 is forecast to remain the same. But Miniclier is proposing to raise a pair of utility taxes along with county’s water/sewer rates. Electric and gas utility taxes are slated for 50-cent hikes from $2 to $2.50.

A 25 percent increase is proposed for water/sewer rates. Miniclier said those rates have been unchanged since 1994.

County schools, under the administrator’s proposal, are to receive $6.1 million in local dollars. The amount is $1 million below the $7.1 million schools had requested from the county and about $900,000 below the county’s $7 million contribution for the current year.

County employees are forecast for up to a 2 percent cost of living pay increase. And there are position modifications which include eliminating a vacant post in public works and reducing a full time position in animal control to part time.

No new capital improvement projects are found in the proposal.

In building his budget proposal, Miniclier said he factored in 20 percent cuts in travel and office supply expenses and a 10 percent reduction in employee mileage. No new agency requests were funded, and 5 percent cuts were made in existing agency funding based on current fiscal year figures, he said.

Following the April 14 public hearing, supervisors are expected to adopt a final budget during their April 22 meeting.