Brandon Twp.- The township board will ‘put everything on the table? in an effort to save between $100,000- $150,000 per year.
‘A revenue saving committee will investigate ways to save money, especially in the area of healthcare for township employees,’said Supervisor Kathy Thurman, who is aiming for $150,000 in cuts. ‘They will also investigate how other townships have saved money… We will look at benefit packages, reorganizational opportunities such as sharing supplies, employees? wages; we’re going to look at everything pretty much.?
Recommendations from department heads will be submitted to the committee, which will consist of Fire Chief Bob McArthur, Treasurer Terry Beltramo, and Trustees Tom Stowell and Charlene Carlson. The com-mittee will bring their findings to a board workshop in February and a recommendation for cuts will be made at the March 2 board meeting.
‘We don’t want employees nervous about it, but we definitely have to look at cutting costs,? said Clerk Jeannie McCreery. ‘We’re in the same boat as every household and every township and municipality is? we need to cut back.?
McCreery believes the township’s savings account could be replenished with about $100,000 in cuts, perhaps with fewer chloride applications for roads, a NO-HAZ collection for residents offered every other year, and ‘spring cleanup? in which residents can drop off large items for trash collection, also offered less frequently.
The cuts are necessary, explained McCreery, to counteract decreases in tax revenue, state revenue sharing, building permits and interest rates, all of which have contributed to less funds for the ‘carry forward? fund for the township.
The state recommends municipalities retain 20 percent of their revenue in a designated carry forward fund.
The board unanimously approved during Monday’s meeting the proposed 2009 township budget, which has revenues of $1,995,701.76 and expenditures of the same. With an approximately $2 million operating budget, that means the carry forward balance should have about $400,000 in it, Thurman said, but it is currently short that by about $10,000.
Additionally, the board has approved transferring $135,000 from the carry forward fund to the general fund to pay end of the year bills, a common move when tax revenue has not yet been received, although the amount this year is higher than in years past.
The money is typically considered a ‘loan? that will be paid back to the general fund when taxes are received; however, tax collection is also down in the township.
Township officials are estimating a collection of approximately $37,000 less in taxes for 2009 compared to 2008, due to a 20 percent increase in the amount of homes with state equalized values that have fallen below or are equal to their taxable value, Thurman said.
The township is also receiving less in tax money from the state. In state revenue sharing, the township receives a percentage of money collected from sales tax, but in 2008, the township received nearly $300,000 less in this revenue than in 2001, Thurman said, all reflective of the poor economy.