County adopts $38.3M budget, increases fleet funding for fuel

The Johnson County Council adopted an amended budget Monday night that included reductions for some departments.

The county’s spending plan remains almost completely intact, with a plan to spend about $38.3 million next year. The county is still expecting about $38.3 million in revenue.

The changes decreased the budget by $19,444. Changes included reducing several line items in the Community Corrections fund. Eleven line items saw reductions ranging from $1,604 to nearly $3,700. The Prosecutor’s Office will also receive less money for overtime.

The county council approved the budget, and related salaries for county employees, unanimously. The council also approved the budgets for its special taxing units on Monday.

During the process, the council heard from several department heads about what their requested funds would be used for and their success stories.

This is something the county council should hear more of, council member Ron Deer said.

“I certainly enjoy — and I think it is something we don’t do enough of — hearing their success stories and hearing their challenges and hearing the big story of what they do for this community,” Deer said.

He suggested the county council have a special meeting in January or February to hear from every department head and elected official about their successes and challenges, and what the council and the public should know about what their departments do.

In other news

The county council on Monday also approved an additional appropriation for the county’s fleet department for fuel. The $20,000 in additional funds is needed to get the department through the rest of the year, said Randy Werden, fleet director.

The fleet department had $107,000 left in its budget for the rest of the year for fuel. In September alone, the department spent about $62,600 on gas, Werden said.

In the last two weeks, the average price of diesel jumped 11 cents to $3.45 a gallon, and the average price of regular-grade gasoline jumped 6 cents to $3.31 per gallon — $1.07 more than a year ago, according to the Associated Press.

The county council also approved an additional appropriation for the Bargersville Community Fire Protection District for the purchase of a new vehicle.

Bargersville Fire wants to buy a new fire engine to replace its current heavy-rescue engine. The truck, purchased in 2009, was a demo, and the department often uses it to help other departments when asked, said Eric Funkhouser, fire chief.

The new engine is expected to be delivered in 12 to 18 months, by the end of 2023 or sometime in 2024.