The Starke County Council discussed necessary budget cuts to the 2019 budget when they met Monday night.
All department heads were asked to cut six percent from their budgets or else the county would make the cuts as needed. It was noted that not all departments made cuts while some made deeper cuts than needed.
As a result, Auditor Kay Chaffins moved money around in the budget and cut to accommodate what was needed to trim the budget to the state-recommended bottom line.
The council members mentioned that a three percent pay increase was probably not feasible with about $830,000 in cuts to the budget. Council members Dave Pearman and Brad Hazelton added comments before the council took a vote on the matter.
“Just so all of the employees know the reason why we’re doing this is we didn’t want to take zero and we didn’t want to limit to one or one-and-a-half [percent]. We’re going to try and maximize it as our goal with this. It might still end up zero or one-and-a-half, but I feel we should roll the dice on it for their benefit,” said Pearman.
Hazelton added, “The council members that aren’t going to be council members in January don’t feel comfortable, is what I get out of it, making a decision for the people that are coming in.”
The council members voted to approve the budget as it was presented Monday night and hold the salary ordinance until February so the new members coming on the council will have a say in the final decision.
Outgoing Councilwoman Nancy Dembowski said that quality employees are the face of any business or government agency, and the county’s employees are appreciated.
It is the hope of the council to offer a raise, but at what percent will be determined.
