County budget hearing set for Monday morning

Wahkiakum County's board of commissioners will hold a public hearing next Monday before beginning final deliberations on their 2020 budgets.

Commissioners met Tuesday (as The Eagle went to press) with county fair officials to go over issues. The board's preliminary budget shows revenues of $81,470 for the fair and expenditures of $85,870, a deficit of $4,400. Last week, fair officials asked the board to increase the appropriation to add hours for the manager so that she can work on fund raising activities in the off season. They point out that the fair rented camping facilities that generated revenue that covered electricity bills.

The budget hearing will start at 9:30 a.m. Copies of the budgets are available from the county auditor's office. Highlights include:

--The Current Expense Fund budget, which covers most courthouse offices, totals $6.8 million. It includes wage increases from union contract negotiations and adjustments from a salary commission intended to make county wages and salaries comparable to those in other counties.

--The County Road Department budget totals $5 million. In recent years, commissioners have shifted county road levy funds to cover anticipated shortages in the Current Expense Fund; anticipating better revenue for Current Expense next year, the board has decreased the shift, restoring approximately $218,000 to the levy.

--The county's transit program budget totals $595,013. Revenues coming from state transit funds total $408,000; federal revenue for Medicaid transport totals $125,000.

--The Capital Improvement Fund totals $611,408. One major expenditure shown in the budget is $150,000 for restroom improvement in the Johnson Park community center in Rosburg.