Allocation of €127m for 2020 budget
THE County Council plans to spend a total of €127,490,414 across all services in 2020, an increase of €10.5 million on the figure spent this year.
Almost half of that money will go towards housing (€26,184,715) and roads (€32,274,366) with the rest spread across sectors such as water services, development management, environmental operations and agriculture.
In terms of income a projected €71,153,790 is expected to be accrued through a combination of government grants, rents and Irish Water recoupments.
At this year’s Budget meeting it was revealed that the decision to approve a 10% increase in Local Property Tax (LPT) at the 2018 and 2019 budgets had generated €2.4 million for the Council and this, coupled with the €1 million accrued through an increase of 3% in Commercial Rates, would go towards the continued support of the development programme for the county.
Discussing the increase in Commercial Rates, which was approved in 2018, Chief Executive Tom Enright said, ‘Ensuring all commercial properties in the county are included on the rates records and are properly rated continues to be a focused objective of the council in order to apply the burden of commercial rates in an equitable manner to business owners across the county.’
The Council expects to receive
€14,773,182 from Local Property Tax (LPT) in 2020, this will be the seventh year in succession that the its baseline funding from this source has remained static. In addition, the Council intends to increase its payroll costs by €3.3 million in 2020 as it attempts to restore its workforce by taking on additional staff.
With regards to rates, the Council will continue to operate and promote the general Rates Incentive Scheme (RIS) implemented in 2013. The scheme is focused on providing up to 6% rates relief to approximately 86% of ratepayers who make up the SME (Small and Medium-sized Enterprises) sector.
‘In an environment of limited funding, the budget as presented strives to strike a balance between the need for ongoing support and development of local services in the county with the need to build on the momentum achieved in 2019 to move the Economic & Community Development Programme closer to delivery,’ states Mr Enright in the Budget report.
‘I continue to be fully committed to the programme and commend the Council for supporting this initiative which I firmly believe will place the Council in a central and proactive position to support and actively encourage economic development, attracting and maximising economic investment, creating greater employment opportunities for our citizens and deliver amenity facilities that will provide a better quality of life for all.’