Fiscal Court holds first reading of budget

The members of the Trimble County Fiscal Court on Monday held a first reading of the proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2012-2013. The summary of appropriations and expenditures amounts to nearly $3.3 million.

The General Fund, projected at $2 million, includes appropriations and expenditures of $660,742 for general government operations, $358,775 for protection of persons and property, $121,280 for general health and sanitation among others.

Road Fund expenditures and appropriations are projected at $980,000 for the coming year. A total of $247,210 is budgeted for the county’s jail expenses. The Local Government Economic Assistance Fund is budgeted at $56,200. Altogether the budget as read on Monday totals $3,283,460.

The magistrates voted to approve the purchase of a patching machine for the county road department at a cost of $69,200 and two Ford Super Duty F550 crew cab trucks with a box and snow plow at $68,440 each.

“We did not have to advertise (the trucks) because we had access to state bid contracting,” Stevens said. “The spreader box and the plow come off like our dump trucks for summertime operation. We know with the purchase of that patching machine that we’re going to need a truck like this. Do we want to purchase two of these trucks to address snow removal and light hauling issues that we have year round without getting a bigger dump truck out?”

Stevens said there are some roads that are maintained by the county that would be much more accessible to a vehicle of the type that was under consideration for purchase.

“I’ve heard that some of the counties around us are doing all of their snow removal with this kind of truck,” Stevens said.

The trucks will be purchased through Crossroads Ford in Frankfort.

The court also discussed the possibility of building a three-sided road barn equipment storage building. The estimated cost for a 40 x 100-ft building with a 16-ft overhead clearance is $25,141, and the estimated cost of a 50 x 100-ft building with a 16-ft overhead clearance is $30,375. No electric installation or insulation is included in the estimates. Stevens will review with road department personnel their input for the building requirements, then prepare building specifications to advertise for bids.

Stevens relayed through MacKenzie Combs, field representative for Congressman Geoff Davis, an invitation to Davis to be part of the ceremonies when the Milton-Madison Bridge replacement project is completed.

“The biggest thing that I’d like to forward to our congressman is an invitation next year whether he’s in office or not … we’re going to have an official reopening of the Milton-Madison Bridge sometime in 2013 and certainly want to make sure that he is more than welcome to come down and be a special guest and not just an attendee. He sure helped pump a lot of enthusiasm back into that project.”

Col. Glenn Fisher (U.S. Army ret.) presented the county with a check for $5,000 on behalf of the Trimble County Soil Conservation Service for the county’s dead animal removal program.

Stevens said when the new animal shelter is completed and a new animal control officer is in place “we might couple that person up with this so that we don’t have to contract so much and we can keep it in house and use this check to help improve the equipment for the dead animal removal program.”