Politics & Government

County Budget Available On-line

Public hearings on the FY 2012 proposed budget start Tuesday.

Public hearings on Oconee County's proposed FY 2012 General Fund budget of $19.3 million start next week. 

The proposed budget and fee schedules are available in their entirety on-line.

It will cost a little more to participate in various sports and activities through the Parks and Recreation Department, and water and sewer rates are going up.

Find out what's happening in Oconeewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

There is no anticipated change to the millage rate, and the current proposal requires the use of only $500,000 from the reserve fund balance.

According to an open letter from Finance Director Jeff Benko to commissioners, a $ was reconciled, balancing by employing 5-10 percent cuts from departments and constitutional offices.  The Sheriff's Office reduced expenditures .  The Parks and Recreation Department and Public Works and Sanitation Department also cut spending and increased some fees to generate additional revenue.

Find out what's happening in Oconeewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"This budget was a very demanding process, but I have no doubt that we will perservere through this challenging time as a more efficient organization," Benko wrote. "It will have some impact to service levels for local tax payers; however, I believe that we can adapt to our current financial environment and forge ahead to accomplish great things."

Over the last three years, Oconee County has reduced it's budget by 27 percent, Benko has said.

The first public hearing will be on June 14 at 7 p.m. at the . Benko said he will have a power point presentation that will explain certain aspects of the budget in detail.   A second public hearing is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on June 21, and commissioners may choose to adopt the budget at a 7 p.m. meeting later that night.


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