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Scott County on solid financial ground
BENTON -- Revenues can't really be depended on but Scott County is on solid financial ground thanks to its elected officials.
The county's annual operating budget for 2015 was approved during the County Commission's Jan. 15 meeting.
"Scott County faces many challenges in the future to provide services to the residents and maintain balance in the funds. As the cost of everything in increasing, we don't always see an increase in revenues received," County Clerk Rita Milam, chief budget officer for the county, stated in her annual budget message. "I have always tried to estimate revenues conservatively, while allowing the expenditures in certain budgets to provide for unforeseen costs that may occur during the year."
In preparing the budget, "everything is based on estimates and histories," said Presiding Commissioner Jamie Burger, with the hope revenues come in at least as high as projected.
In the 2014 budget, revenue was projected at $5,173,719 for the General Revenue Fund while only $5,103,286.87 was actually received by the county.
Although overall revenue was down some due to reimbursements not being received from the state or reimbursable grants yet, "I think our sales tax numbers were slightly up," Burger said. "We were really close -- and that was more than made up for on the expenditure side."
Expenditures from General Revenue for 2014 were budgeted at $5,744,101 but only $5,206,494.61 was spent.
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