By MaryHelen Swanson

ìEssentially, weíre in a tough spot and I donít see that changing,î said Chisago County Administrator John Moosey last week as the commissioners wrestled with a potential 18 percent levy increase.

So serious were they, that they dispensed with Robertís Rules of Order to facilitate discussion.

The boardís main issue? What would be an affordable increase?

Moosey pointed to the 136 percent usage of health insurance which means facing a 27-29 percent increase in health insurance premiums. The increase, he said, will probably wipe out any cost-of-livng increase.

Department by department, they came to explain the need for increased budgets and plead for dollars that had been cut from initial budgets.

The 18 percent levy increase was proposed by Auditor Dennis Freed, and supported by Treasurer Lee Olson.

Mooseyís memorandum to the board was less than positive.

He pointed out that with the 18 percent budget, the county would not get any courthouse security, no additional staff (requests were for 22 persons at an estimated cost of $905,000), no headway on the countyís Capital Improvement Plan for 2007, no headway on the county jail, no improvements to the courthouse, and no catching up on highway construction.

ìWe have already eliminated necessary items.î ìWe are at the point of reducing existing service.î

Moosey noted that a multiple of items have put the county in this position.

First, he noted, for every one percent increase in the budget expenditures, there is a corresponding 2 percent levy increase.

The annual budget is $52 million, the levy is $26 million. ìEvery opportunity to raise funds outside of the tax levy has been played,î he noted.

The state has cut and capped reimbursements and earnings to the county, therefore, he went on, each new dollar raised comes directly from the property tax levy.

Another factor is the countyís heavy reliance on residential tax base. Residents get ìsockedî with 95 percent of the tax burden, he said.

In a typical county, the burden on homeowners is 80 percent.

ìWe can not do anything about this for 2007 or in the near future, ìhe went on.

He said thatís why the county must seek and support economic development.

ìYou do not plant a tree today and expect shade next month; you plant a tree to get its benefit 10 years down the road.î

ìEconomic development needs to be supported now or else we tell our citizens that they can expect no tax relief ever,î he continued.

ìThe state of Minnesota has made it clear that we are on our own,î Moosey said.

The increase in the cost of doing business is another factor in the levy increase.

Oil and gasoline increases have been budget breakers.

A slow down of growth isnít good for the county, either, he noted. County operations benefit from growth, and some departments, such as recorder and environmental services, supported their operations by the growth.

Being conservative in operations will be a killer for tomorrow, he said.

He noted that the county has decaying roads (considered one of the worst counties in the state), and buildings that are small and in disrepair.

Moosey noted that the cuts from the state in 2004, 2005 and 2006 impacted the county seriously.

The proposal for 2007 is expensive, he said, even though it is a ìstripped down, donít do anything but surviveî budget.

Moosey made mention of treasurer Olsonís facetious mantra ìWe are going to borrow our way to prosperity!î

But he said bonding is a practical way to finance necessary projects when there is little savings to accomplish this work.

The county is currently spending about 15 percent of its levy dollars retiring debt.

ìBonding does impact the taxpayerís tax statements and their desire to pay for service, ìhe said.

Moosey had some facts regarding the 2007 budget:

ï cost of living increase in last 12 months 4.3 percent;

ï home construction down about 51 percent;

ï personnel costs expected to rise at least 1 percent (due in part to the health insurance increase mentioned above);

ï cuts expected to Human Services operations;

ï large increases requested by highway operations and construction;

ï all or most areas for revenue earnings already being used.

He also noted that the 2007 levy based on initial requests was $42 million, a 69 percent increase.

The 18 percent levy proposed by the auditor, treasurer and Moosey himself is $30,030,036.

Responding to cuts in their budgets were Sheriff Todd Rivard, HHS director Mary Sheehan, highway engineer Bill Malin and environmental services Mary Schmitz.

Rivard said he canít suffer the cuts. ìWeíve bitten the bullet four years and itís catching up to us,î he said.

Out-of-county prisoners are over budget now by $20,000. Cutting that line item isnít good because it is an uncontrollable cost.

Repairs to the jail and to squad cars are other big ticket items.

And three new positions have been requested, a jail account assistant and two supervisors.

The bottom line, Rivard said, is that the jail budget is hurting this year.

Out-of home placements in Human Services is also costly, but a situation that canít be ignored, Sheehan said.

The auditorís budget does not include staffing costs, she said. Even with that budget she anticipates some cuts in services.

With the core budget at 18 percent, she continued, people will be turned away for services.

If the budget is cut further, more services will be cut.

ìThese are real people who will be affected,î she said.

Commissioner added that when HHS makes changes in services, that will affect other county departments, too.

The ripple effect, she said, could be huge.

Commissioner Ben Montzka, who made it know that he does not support an 18 percent increase, felt Sheehan was being too pessimistic.

Board chairman Mike Robinson said a lot of people were going to get hurt this year - employees and citizens.

Noting that the federal government intends to pull the plug on child welfare targeted case management funding, Commissioner Rick Olseen asked if the county still has to provide the services.

ìWe have a responsibility to protect children,î Sheehan said.

The problem in highway, Malin said, is that in 1997 the budget was cut $1 million and highway has been paying for it for seven years.

Highway maintenance is a big ticket item, he noted, road improvements are covered by federal, state or bonds.

Montzka told Malin if he reduced his budget to a 10 percent increase, the county could save six percent of the 18 percent increase.

The commissioners will meet tonight to decide on the preliminary levy for 2007. It cannot be increased.

Moosey said the county canít find any other way to increase revenues ... itís up to the commissioners and the taxpayers, he said.

Comment from Anne Thom, 9/18/06

Where are the County Commissioners ideas or proposed solutions? To simply comment that a lot of people are going to get hurt (Mike Robinson) shows absolutely no leadership. I am also hoping some hard questions are being asked such as why does the jail need two supervisors or what are other counties doing to better manage Child Protection Services? Has the HR Director analyzed staffing needs or are there incentives for efficiency or ideas that might involve some risk? Have you asked the citizens where they could help out? With the majority of us driving into Minneapolis and St. Paul to work we must have some talented people here who could contribute to task forces and projects. No one deserves to be on the Board who cannot work hard to find solutions. Service cuts and tax increases are not solutions they are symptoms of a crumbling infrastructure, some of that brought on directly by the state legislature we elected that made those cuts a level above the County. Those expenses and needs didn't go away, they just trickled down. Remember that when you go to the polls in November and start voting for the common good.

Comment from M Galvinn, 9/18/06

People can't afford to live in North Branch (NOW) and to even consider retiring there is out of the question. Our taxes went up $180 last year.