Benton County Officials Back Raises

BENTONVILLE -- Benton County's justices of the peace endorsed raises for county employees Monday as they continued working on the county's 2015 budget.

The county's budget committee agreed to a goal of 1 percent cost-of-living increases, with more money set aside for merit increases, and a $50 monthly county contribution to the employees health plan. The panel voted unanimously in support of a plan to include a total of $647,000 for raises. Merit raises could range up to 5 percent for individual employees. The justices of the peace also agreed to consider 2 percent cost-of-living raises for the county's elected officials. The committee discussed the raises but left them as a "place holder" and subject to change as their discussion of other areas of the budget continued.

AT A GLANCE

Budget Talks

The Benton County Quorum Court’s Finance Committee discussed raises and new personnel requests, capital purchases, and other 2015 budget issues Monday. The panel is aiming to have a complete budget ready for consideration at the Dec. 4 Finance Committee meeting.

Source: Staff Report

The county is looking at $63.8 million in available money in the general fund and road fund. With transfers out of the general fund and a reserve required by state law the county expects to have $55.7 million to spend. Initial budget requests show about $45.5 million in expenses, including capital items, but excluding raises and new personnel. That leaves the county with about $10.2 million in reserve. County officials said Monday they now expected to have about $2.4 million to cover new personnel, raises and other added expenses for 2015.

Brenda Guenther, comptroller, has said raises for county employees cost about $305,000 for each 1 percent increase, with about $215,000 coming from the general fund. Other county funds would pay part of the cost of employee raises that would increase the total cost to about $294,000 for each 1 percent raise.

The Budget Committee recommended seven new employee requests, costing about $332,000, be included in the 2015 budget. An additional employee for the Election Commission also was recommended, which would cost about $43,000. Two other new positions were left for possible consideration as the budget talks continue.

At deadline, the committee had begun reviewing the county's 2015 capital requests. The capital requests submitted to the committee include five road graders for the Road Department. Jeff Clark, public services administrator who heads the Road Department, is asking to begin buying five road graders every year and selling them on a five-year rotation. Buying five road graders would cost about $1.5 million with the county expecting to receive about $657,000 by selling five older graders. County officials have said they can buy the new graders with a guaranteed buy-back plan that after five years would reduce the net cost of each grader from about $300,000 to about $65,000.

The Road Department is asking for a new excavator, a new backhoe tractor and a mini excavator, along with eight new trucks. After the trade-ins for the used vehicles being replaced, the department requests total about $1.5 million.

The county also is looking to buy two fire trucks to be put into the rural fire service fleet. Fire Marshal Marc Trollinger told the committee the new trucks will be assigned to the Centerton Fire Department and the Little Flock Fire Department.

The Sheriff's Office and Jail have several new vehicles on the capital items list, along with a new phone system. The Sheriff's Office is asking for about $220,000 from the general fund for vehicles with other funds paying about $450,000 for the rest of the requests.

The Information Services Department has a plan to spend $196,000 to upgrade the data process system. If approved, that plan should save the county up to $595,000 in other IT projects, according to officials.

NW News on 11/25/2014

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