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Webster County treasurer urges bigger raises, cites investment and titling revenue
Summary
Webster County Treasurer Brenda Angstrom told the Board of Supervisors she has cut expenses since 2019, highlighted roughly $756,705 average annual investment income and extra titling fees as revenue sources, and asked permission to convert a part-time clerk to full time and to pursue larger employee raises amid state caps on property-tax growth.
Brenda Angstrom, Webster County Treasurer, told the Board of Supervisors she reduced her office budget by 12% when she took office in 2019 and has since eliminated three staff positions, leaving her office short-staffed and stretching remaining employees.
"I cut my budget right off the bat by 12%." Angstrom said she has not increased expenses except when necessary for postage or supplies and that the office's workload has grown because dealers and residents from surrounding towns now bring titling business to Webster County.
Angstrom asked the board to allow department heads to present dollar amounts for desired raises, rather than strict percentage ceilings. She said the county's investment interest has averaged about "$756,705 a year" since 2019 and pointed to additional revenue from cross-county titling, noting, "We get $10 for any extra for any type of title work that we do," with the office able to process many titles in a single day.
Nut graf: Angstrom framed the request for larger raises as a retention and fairness issue: she said small, uniform raises (1–2%) risk losing experienced clerks even as some departments received larger increases in the prior cycle. Board members acknowledged staffing concerns but stressed legal and fiscal constraints, including a cited state law (House File 718) that they said caps growth at about 3% and pending legislative proposals that could further limit property-tax increases.
Board members said supply and service costs are rising (they discussed increases of roughly 4% to 10%), which narrows the budgetary room for raises even if individual offices bring in additional fees. One board member urged Angstrom to submit a revised budget showing the proposed change from part time to full time so the board can evaluate the salary impact.
Personnel planning: Angstrom told the board a longtime clerk (Caroline) plans to retire in September and asked to make a current permanent part-time employee (Jackie) full time starting July 1 to allow training before the retirement. A supervisor said that adjustment "makes sense" and asked Angstrom to submit revised salary figures; Angstrom agreed to send updated numbers.
The meeting included praise for Angstrom's cross-training: one attendee noted deputies "jumped right in" when staff were absent and said the treasurer's office performed well during a December staffing disruption. Angstrom said she will continue advocating for employees and training staff, but recognized the board must balance wage requests against broader county obligations and potential state-imposed limits on revenue growth.
The board did not take a formal vote on raises at this meeting; members directed Angstrom to provide updated budget figures reflecting the proposed July 1 staffing change and to include salary details for further discussion at the next budget review.
