Saline's struggle with budget continues

The Saline County Board Budget and Finance committee came together Wednesday to discuss the county budget. The committee's hope is to have a working budget put together to present to the whole of the Saline County Board at its regular meeting Dec. 22 but the committee has hit a big brick wall.

Two of the county's office holders are not meeting the board's requested financial figures set for their offices. One office is $52,000 above where the board needs it to be, and the board cannot move forward until the figures match up.

"We cannot put in fictitious numbers," said committee member Mike McKinnis." People are already griping about the high tax rates, we can't go much higher."

Cuts have been made in each office in Saline County and most of the office holders have been compliant, some falling well below the number produced by the county board. Without knowing what the state is going to do next year, it is apparent that budget planning has been difficult.

"We can't generate money that we don't have," said Kerry Harbison, board chairman.

The board has a predicted expenditure of $5.9 million for 2016 and the county has budgeted those funds.

"We aren't hiding anything," said committee member Jay Williams. "This has to go to that, and that has to go to this."

Once the state releases money or produces a budget, the board will know more about what 2016 looks like. But until that point it is a guessing game.

Harbison is hopeful that in the coming months the state will release what they are doing and the county board will have more money to disperse. But it is better to play safe now than to be sorry later.

"If the two office holders do not eventually comply with the request to adjust their line items for the budget, the finance committee will take the issue to the full board," said Joe Jackson, head of the budget and finance committee.

The board plans to contact the attorney general to find out what it has at its disposal to move the non-compliant office holders, so the budget can move forward. There is another meeting scheduled for 4:30 p.m. today for officials to discuss budgeting options.