Benton County budget approved

3% merit raises included for employees with 5% cap overall

BENTONVILLE — The last item of new business on Thursday night’s Benton County Quorum Court agenda set the stage for 2020.

That item was next year’s budget, which the court approved. The meeting was held a week early because the regular meeting fell on Thanksgiving Day.

The budget shows general revenue of $51.3 million and expenses of about $50.4 million with a surplus of $864,340.

The county has about $13 million in reserve and $6.4 million in statutory reserve, according to documents.

The budget includes 3% merit raises for employees. There is a 5% cap for the raises.

“It was very smooth compared to previous years,” Justice of the Peace Michelle Chiocco said of the budget process. “The elected officials did what we asked them to do. They brought us something reasonable.”

Justice of the Peace James Furgason said the budget process went extremely well. It was the first time for Furgason to work on a county budget. He was appointed to the court by Gov. Asa Hutchinson earlier this year. Furgason did have budget experience as a member of Gentry’s City Council.

Furgason said the county will have financial concerns to address in the future with the possibility of adding another pod to the jail on Southwest 14th Street and a new downtown courts complex.

Replacing the shop and administration building at the Road Department on Southwest 14th Street is among next year’s capital projects. The cost would be $150,000. Bridge work, also part of the capital projects, totals $1.1 million, according to documents.

Capital requests for 2020 — which includes replacing vehicles at the Sheriff’s Office

and equipment at the Road Department — total $4.3 million, but that drops by $880,000 with the sale of old Road Department equipment and grant proceeds.

The budget also shows $383,524 in payments to 10 organizations, including money for the Benton County Solid Waste District, Ozark Regional Transit, the Washington County HIV Clinic and the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension.

The county will have debt service in 2020 that includes $524,917 for election equipment and $438,831 for a public safety radio system going live next year, according to documents.