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Commissioners begin budget workshop as state levy figures remain pending
Summary
Starke County commissioners opened a budget workshop to review departmental draft budgets and reserve levels while noting the state has not yet provided final levy or tax-cap figures. Chair warned departments that anticipated raises are not guaranteed until state guidance arrives.
Starke County commissioners opened a budget workshop with a reminder that the state had not yet provided detailed guidance under the recent house bill, leaving local levy and tax-cap figures "not provided," and that departments should not assume automatic pay increases.
“Last year we told departments to plan for cuts and 3% raises; we still have not received the state's information, so if your department doesn't get the raise that you thought you should get, you were forewarned,” the chair said during opening remarks (Chair, SEG 090–107). Commissioners noted the county currently carries close to six months of reserves, and the local finance board will need to meet to decide on carryover or investment strategies.
The workshop will continue item-by-item. Commissioners said staff will check with the Department of Local Government Finance and the State Board of Accounts where technical guidance is needed, and that any formal adjustments will be handled after those clarifications arrive. No final budget decisions were made at the session; the board flagged several departmental line items for follow-up and asked some offices to return revised figures before the final hearing.
