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McLean Co. doesn't plan tax increase
By M.K. Guetersloh
mkguetersloh@pantagraph.com
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BLOOMINGTON — Property tax rates in McLean County next year could stay about the same if the budget presented to the County Board Tuesday is approved.

The balanced $79.8 million budget is under review by the County Board. The proposed budget is about $6.3 million more than the current budget, but the additional money will come from the increased property value.

The county’s equalized assess valuation is projected to increase by 4.8 percent over the last year, said County Administrator John Zeunik in his budget message to the board.

The new spending plan includes the addition of two correctional officers for the McLean County Sheriff’s Department and a legal assistant for the public defender’s office. The three positions will add about $114,500 in personal costs to the budget.

Also, the plan calls for non-union employees of the county to receive a 2.5 percent salary increase, slightly less than the 2.6 percent cost of living estimated by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Zeunik said.

Zeunik said part of the challenge to drafting the budget is covering the increasing cost to do business. He said little growth in sales tax revenue contributes to that challenge.

“Our sales tax growth has been flat, but there is always an increase in the cost of providing services,” Zeunik said.

The income the county receives in fees has not grown either and in some cases has decreased.

“The slow down in the housing industry has not brought in the fee income,” Zeunik said. “And I don’t see that increasing at this time.”

A delay by legislators in Springfield to complete the state’s budget also caused the county problems.

Because of Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s veto of a state grant-in-aid program for funding probation officers, Zeunik said the county had to find $125,000 to cover officers’ salaries.

The budget will be under review by the board and its committees. The board will have the budget in place for the beginning of its fiscal year, Jan. 1.

In action taken by Tuesday, the board voted 10 to 8 approved an expansion of a no-kill animal shelter.

Central Illinois Small Animal Rescue in Colfax proposed three new buildings, a storage facility and a pet cemetery on about 6 acres on the north side of 1400 North Road.

Several board members said they were uneasy about having a shelter that would care for hundreds of animals and no way to regulate it.

Zoning director Phil Dick said it would be an Illinois Department of Agriculture case if animals were not being cared for properly at the shelter.

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Reader comments on this story - 6 total

Note: All views and opinions expressed in reader comments are solely those of the individual submitting the comment, and not those of the Pantagraph or its staff.

To Once Again wrote on Sep 19, 2007 9:00 AM:

" The last time I checked, the CPI for 2007 is 2.4% and actually in today's pantagraph it is reported that it went down a little more. All non-union county employees got a 2.5% automatic raise this year plus a merit raise of up to 3.5%. So the range is 2.5% to 6%. Most of the union employees see 1.8% or 2.0% automatic each year, plus their negotiated increases of around 3%, plus negotiated range adjustments each three years or so. "

Once again wrote on Sep 18, 2007 10:08 PM:

" raises are less than the cost of living increase. McLean County continually does this to their employees, so each year the Deputies and County Highway and other "non-professional" workers fall further behind. Wake up County Board. It takes money to feed a family and send kids to school. You should be paying raises at or above the cost of living increases, not consistently below cost of living increases. "

reader wrote on Sep 18, 2007 7:20 PM:

" #@$% taxes "

Don't Be Fooled wrote on Sep 18, 2007 6:16 PM:

" No tax increase, however, let's see our homes get over valued yet again. I would LOVE to sell my house for the assessed value. This is getting out of hand in McLean County, but gee, thanks for no tax increase - I was almost fooled. "

In other news.... wrote on Sep 18, 2007 3:54 PM:

" McLean County doesn't 'plan' on any bad weather. "

Taxpayer wrote on Sep 18, 2007 3:44 PM:

" What a relief. Now all I have to worry about is Heartland, Unit 5, the City of Bloomington, and some stupid minor league baseball team. "
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