The Greene County Commission has set its 2015 General Revenue budget at $37,780,114. That’s a $2.5 million increase over the 2014 budget.
The county’s 2015 all funds budget totals $117,505,014.
The commission officially adopted the budget Friday, according to a news release.
Officials say the increase “reflects the funding of several major needs due to the extended recession and the past six years of budget austerity.”
The revenue bump, however, represents “a very small overall increase,” officials say. The release notes that the budget still falls short by $9,480,758 in meeting needs outlined by county office holders and department heads.
It includes a 3 percent cost of living salary increase for all county employees, as well as a “one step increase” for those with four or more years of continuous service.
In 2014, the county saw a significant sales tax revenue increase of 7.48 percent over that of 2013. However, a conservative 1 percent sales tax revenue increase over 2014 has been included in the 2015 budget.
The release goes on to say that 27 Greene County position vacancies have remained unfulfilled, creating a serious workload burden for employees. The 2015 adopted budget restores two General Revenue positions and converts one part time position to full time status, and adds four new positions to the Criminal Justice system (3 court bailiffs and one traffic court clerk).