Supervisors to get first look at proposed budget

The Yuma County Board of Supervisors will hold a special meeting Monday to get its first look at the proposed budget for fiscal 201819, along with some new approaches county staff is considering for an uncertain funding future.

“We wanted to meet with them because there are some different alternatives,” County Administrator Susan Thorpe said. “We don’t know about several impacts from the state, because EORP, which is the Elected Officials Retirement Program, so we have to prepare for the worst.

“We’ve identified what that cost is, if the state Legislature does not act to reduce or limit the obligation which they’ve now increased, from 23.5 percent contribution to 61.5 percent contribution,” she said. If that figure isn’t changed, the county will take an estimated hit of $757,000 next budget year, which begins July 1.

“That and all the other impacts that are already at $732,000 that they’re already forcing us to take to pay for state services,” she said.

The board members will get an overview of the budget, with a more in-depth presentation at its next regular meeting on May 7. “We’ll give them the highlights of the recommended budget, as well as how to deal with the EORP increase, which is not something we have budgeted,” Thorpe said.

The draft budget book, released Friday afternoon, includes general operating fund expenses of $82.8 million, up about $4 million from the current year. This is partly due to a recommended shift in accounting practices which minimized spending increases, according to the introduction by Thorpe.

Other drivers besides retirement fund obligations and state mandates include salary hikes tied to market adjustments and the statewide minimum wage increase, higher Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System and mental health care costs, capital improvement needs and vehicle replacements.

The combined property tax rate being recommended is 3.6464, slightly down from the current 3.6844 to keep the amount collected from owners level at about $2.5 million due to an increase in property values. Thorpe said one alternate plan presented will be to keep the property tax rate the same, which would lead to more than $200,000 in collected revenue.

The meeting will begin at 9 a.m. Monday in the Board of Supervisors’ auditorium, 198 S. Main St., Yuma. The meeting will be broadcast on the county’s cable channel, Yuma77, and webcast and available for later viewing at www.yumacountyaz.gov and the Yuma County Government Facebook page. Spanish subtitles are available on rebroadcasts.