Benton County OKs 2014 Budget

BENTONVILLE — Benton County’s 2014 budget was approved Thursday night over the objections of one of the justices of the peace who wanted to amend the budget and cut other items to free money to pay for rural ambulance service.

Joel Jones, justice of the peace for District 7, said he didn’t want the county to pay for ambulance service from reserve. Jones proposed cutting two fire trucks, with a cost of $450,000, a new $90,000 dump truck from the Road Department’s budget, reducing the department’s asphalt budget by $250,000 and cutting $5,105 from the food budget for the Juvenile Detention Center.

At A Glance

Quorum Court Action

In its other business Thursday, Benton Count's Quorum Court approved:

• Expressing the willingness to use $301,600 in federal money and $75,400 in county money for the design of Wild Cat Bridge

• Spending $18,220 to repair damage from a lightning strike to lighting at the jail.

• Transferring $800,000 to the Road Department to pay for storm damage repair.

• Spending $20,000 for right-of-way on the Windmill Road project.

• Adopting new planning regulations.

• Adopting a new fee schedule for the Planning Department.

Source: Staff Report

“I don’t like going into next year without a plan for EMS, whether the referendum passes or fails,” Jones said. “I said early on in the process I didn’t want to fund it out of reserves and I still don’t.”

Jones’ motion drew no support from the other justices of the peace. Several said they wanted to await the outcome of the Feb. 11 election on the proposed ambulance funding plan.

“I don’t think we should jump the gun and approve the EMS funding for the year until we find out if the referendum passes or fails,” Brent Meyers, justice of the peace for District 14, said.

Tom Allen, justice of the peace for District 4, said he’s not ready to pay for ambulance service if the emergency medical services district and the $85 annual fee is voted down.

“I’m going to take it as a vote not to have ambulance service if they vote that way,” Allen said.

The justices of the peace defeated the proposed amendment by a vote of 1 in favor — Jones — and 14 against. The 2014 budget was then passed by a unanimous vote.

According to Sarah Daniels, comptroller, the budget shows increases from 2013 in both revenue and expenditures. The 2014 budget calls for $48,204,012 in revenue, she said.

Elected officials had set a target of boosting employee pay by 7 percent when the budget process began. That was cut to 4 percent. Daniels said the 2014 budget includes $2,246,537 in capital expenses, including transferring $625,000 into capital projects reserve, which is used for large building projects or other capital requests during the year.

The budget also includes $694,000 for heavy machinery and equipment for the Road Department, $450,000 for two fire engines for rural fire service, $457,000 for four building improvement projects including a new roof on the courthouse.

Daniels said personnel costs for 2014 increased about $2.1 million from $36,553,452 in 2013.

For 2014, Daniels said, the justices of the peace have endorsed $48,292,778 in expenditures. The $88,776 difference is money from reserve to make the first three months of payments to the seven cities providing rural ambulance service. The justices of the peace agreed to repay the reserve from money not spent in 2013.

The Quorum Court in September created an emergency medical services district and set an $85 annual fee for households outside incorporated cities and towns not in the Northeast Benton County Emergency Medical Service District. T

A petition drive forced the district and fee to be put to a vote. County Judge Bob Clinard set the election for Feb. 11. Clinard said he wants to have the uncertainty surrounding ambulance funding resolved as quickly as possible.

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