After years of being frugal with its spending and tight with its personnel, Wasco County’s 2015-16 approved budget has an increase of nearly $8 million, from $34,841,951 to $42,639,174.
This comes after a decrease of $5 million last fiscal year.
More than half of the increase comes from the newly created Community Development Fund in which Mid-Columbia Center for Living is applying for a $4 million Community Development Block Grant to fund a capital project. The CDBG is a federal grant and must go through a government agency.
The general fund will increase 14 percent, from $14,757,716 to $16,845,165, as Wasco County is hiring seven new full-time employees—two appraisers and one temporary office specialist to assist in data conversion of the new software in the tax and assessment department, a human resource position in the finance department and two associate planners and one assistant planner in the planning department.
“We have ran extremely tight personnel wise,” Finance Director Monica Morris said. “Workloads are huge, very tight, very little growth. There was the recession in 2009-10, so there was no hiring. We were very concerned and the department directors really stepped up and did a great job. But there comes a point where the legislation requirements, the law changes, the workload was just greater than what we can do with our current staff.”
The increase in staff is the largest in at least 10 years. Morris said the tax and assessment department hasn’t added staff in the eight years she’s been finance director.
Assessment and Taxation Director Jill Amery said the department hasn’t been able to do a mass reappraisal of a neighborhood since the early 2000s and most were done in the 90s.
The planning department has also been undermanned and new staff will help update the comprehensive land-use plan, which has only undergone minor changes since it was developed in 1983.
Another increase in the general fund comes in Wasco County’s insurance as liability is going up 7.6 percent and property is expected to increase 5 percent.
The budget for all five of Wasco County’s reserve funds is set to increase.
The general operating reserve, a non-restricted fund that was created to offset future operating shortfalls as part of long term forecasting, will go up from $1,460,800 to $2,065,800.
“I would like to have a certain amount in there so that operations are smooth so we’re not reactionary in the event of a huge funding issue,” Morris said. “I want the county continuing to operate. Right now, it cost 1.8 million a month to operate the county so this is just over one full month.”
Wasco County has two additional non-restricted reserves—facility capital, which is funds saved for facility improvements or replacements that due to the high cost of development can’t be achieved in a single budget year, and the capital acquisition reserve, which is money saved to go towards purchasing land or capital.
Non-restricted reserved funds have doubled since 2011, when the levels were not sufficient enough to accomplish any long range planning or in sustaining services in the event of a disaster.
Now, the reserve levels are closer to accomplishing both.
There’s also two restricted reserves—911 equipment and the road reserve fund, which helps protect the county in case a natural disaster destroys any function of the road infrastructure.
Wasco County has been able to add to its reserves because of a hefty beginning balance.
In 2014-15, the county brought in $5,458,000 more in revenue than was spent.
“We are very realistic in our budget with our revenues,” Morris said. “We’re living within our means so we’re bringing in more revenue then we’re spending and instead of allowing it to just sit, it was moved and put into the reserve,” Morris said. “I have to stay hats off to our department directors.
When you look at how frugal they have been, not only are they frugal in their spending but they are aggressive on obtaining their revenue so it’s a two-way street.”
Revenues are expected to increase slightly the next fiscal year, from $17,671,308 to $18,234,756.
The two biggest streams come from property taxes (45 percent) and state funding (26 percent).
A public hearing will be held Wednesday, June 17 at 10:30 a.m. to adopt the budget.
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