PORT ANGELES — Clallam County has a final budget for 2016, and the $36.8 million spending plan is balanced by a $3 million draw on general fund reserves.
Commissioner Mike Chapman said Tuesday he will look for ways to reduce that spending next year.
“Obviously, we have to have a budget,” Chapman said before a unanimous board vote.
“I don’t intend to live under this budget. I don’t intend to spend as much of the reserves,” he said.
“My message to [Commissioner] Bill [Peach] and Commissioner-elect [Mark] Ozias is that I think in January, we need to roll up our sleeves and make some changes so we don’t use all $3 million of reserves.”
Ozias, who defeated Commissioner Jim McEntire in the November election, will be sworn into office in the first week of January.
Chapman, a 15th-year commissioner, said the new board should consider reinstating the county’s 8.4 percent sales tax rate, which was lowered to 8.2 percent by unanimous vote in April.
“I expect that that [tax holiday] will be a discussion point early in the year,” Chapman said.
Chapman added that the board should be prudent in filling vacant positions to reduce spending in the general fund, which is used for day-to-day operations.
“But we don’t want to cut services, either,” Chapman said.
Suggests reports
To stay on top of revenue projections, Chapman suggested quarterly or perhaps monthly reports from the county auditor and treasurer’s offices.
A $3 million draw on the general fund would leave $9.2 million in reserve, all but $869,083 of which is restricted by policy.
Clallam County has traditionally underestimated revenue and overestimated spending in its budgets, Chapman said.
“I appreciate being able to monitor very carefully where we’re going with regard to the revenues,” Peach said in Tuesday’s board meeting.
“Personally, I do think that we’ve got some room in the budget because of the way it’s organized. But I agree; we should be watching it like a hawk and take corrective action if necessary.”
Staffing
About $1.7 million of the anticipated reserve spending is for ongoing expenses such as staffing.
“That to me is really, really important,” Peach said.
The budget retains a 40-hour workweek for employees who were working 37½-hour schedules and recently moved to full time.
It also adds the equivalent of 12.7 full-time employees.
“Any positions that still haven’t been filled, we should probably just look at those one more time,” Chapman said.
McEntire and Peach voted last week for no increase to the county’s general purpose and road fund property tax levies for 2016.
Chapman said he favored the 1 percent property tax increase that governments and junior taxing districts are allowed by law.
Clallam County this year had 28 public budget meetings, three public hearings and 20 individual department head meetings on the budget.
After hearing public comments in the first two public hearings Dec. 1, commissioners returned $250,000 to the real estate excise tax fund that was budgeted for a study of a shooting range.
In grant-supported other funds, total budgeted expenditures exceed revenues $62.4 million to $49.5 million, leaving a combined ending fund balance of $25 million.
Carlsborg sewer
Notably, Clallam County plans to spend $10.4 million next year for construction of the Carlsborg sewer.
Jones provided an annual snapshot of the county budget’s effect on the local economy.
The 2016 budget takes $30.7 million out of the economy in taxes, fees and fines and puts $82.5 million back into the economy in payroll, supplies, contracting services and capital projects for a net positive of $51.8 million, Jones said in the executive summary.
The 2016 budget and supporting documents are available on the county’s website, www.clallam.net, under the “Budget and Finance” link.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5072, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
