By PATRICK ADRIAN
Special to The Eagle Times
CLAREMONT – The City Council approved a 2019 municipal operating budget of $17,284,788 last night, with $10,644,111 to be raised by taxes.
The approved budget is a $915,720 from the current year, and increases the city portion of the tax rate to 15.177, an increase of 34 cents. The impact approximates to an additional $39 on a $177,000 home.
The new budget includes $62,150 in funds to hire a legal assistant, which City Manager Ryan McNutt would provide needed support to city departments, which he said are understaffed and overwhelmed with daily responsibilities. McNutt said this position combines the duties of a versatile administrative assistant with a legal knowledge applicable to departments like human resources and finances.
The original position budget was $82,850, but the council voted to reduce the salary for 2019 by $20,700. Assistant Mayor Allen Damren, who made the motion, said that the city would not likely fill the position until the next fiscal quarter, so the city may only spend three-fourths of the requested amount. The council approved the budget by a vote of 6-3. Jon Stone, Jeremy Zullo and Abigail Kier voted in opposition.
The council also voted to reduce $12,500 from the city airport budget, which would have funded a part time maintenance position. Councilor Nick Koloski opposed the motion, saying it was a small amount for a needed service. Koloski said that currently the fire chief must perform many of those services, which include refilling the fuel tanks and small equipment repairs.
Councilor Jon Stone said that while the maintenance position to consider restoring in the future, he could not justify putting it on the tax rate. The council passed the motion to remove it by a vote of 8-1.
McNutt said in his budget overview that unfunded department requests include two open positions in the police department and one firefighter position to replace a retired member. One of the police officer positions will be filled with $83,600 in funds encumbered from the current year budget.
The council also approved a 2019 water budget of $2,197,013 and a sewage budget of $2,746,776. Water and sewage budgets are funded by service users and do not impact the tax rate.
As your daily newspaper, we are committed to providing you with important local news coverage for Sullivan County and the surrounding areas.