Jasper Adjusts FY11 Budget, Proposes Budget for 2012

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On Monday night, December 5th, Jasper City Council held its final meeting of 2011. As such, the Council gave its final 2011 Financial Report, while looking ahead by presenting its 2012 Budget. City Clerk and member of the Budget Committee Tacie Williams explained that the 2011 Budget required an amendment to bring finances back in line.

“This is really just a shift in capital that we didn’t have time to complete this year and really (we’re) just adjusting our budget down to operations; there’s not really an overall increase that’s significant.”

According to Williams,these unfinished projects include several extensions of water lines. In a recent correspondence with FYN, she said that the City

“took the capital (allocated to these projects) out (of the FY11 Budget) and moved it to (the) 2012 (budget).”

After some final words about the 2011 Budget, the City looked ahead to next year’s finances.

Williams presented the proposed 2012 Budget, calling it ambitious in capital expenditures, but not in operations. With an eight percent increase in capital expenditures, Williams noted that next year’s budget has,

“a lot of capital items that we most likely won’t get to, but we’re strategically planning ahead and hope to do as much as we can.”

One such project is the construction of a water tank on Liberty Lane. Also, the eight percent increase includes a $100,000 State grant for Doris Wigington Park.

Later, Mayor Pro Tem and also a member of the Budget Committee Jim Looney added,

“the budget does include a three percent increase for employees, effective January first, and, later on in the budget year it will allow for an increase for a head count in personal services of three departments: The Street Department, Water Distribution, and Water Treatment Department.”

Mayor John Weaver commented that this will help with upcoming projects.

The next public Budget Hearing will be next Monday December 12th at 5:30 P.M. at City Hall in Jasper. The budget will then be approved the following Monday, December 19th, also at 5:30 P.M. at Jasper City Hall. Williams said that the City will post the proposed 2012 Budget on the City website for public perusal.

Williams also mentioned that City property bills have gone out and are due February 3, 2012

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